Molly Sinclair McCartney

Molly Sinclair McCartney worked as a newspaper reporter for more than 30 years, including 14.5 years at the Washington Post and 10 years at the Miami Herald. In 2012 she was appointed a Woodrow Wilson Public Scholar to do the research and interviews needed to finish "America's War Machine: Vested Interests, Endless Conflicts," the book her husband, national security reporter James McCartney, was writing when he died. St. Martin’s Press published the McCartney book in October 2015. She has a degree in liberal studies from Georgetown University, and she was a Nieman Fellow, class of 1978, at Harvard University. She completed that year with a three-month trip around the world and has traveled widely since then, including a trip through Syria in May 2010 – ten months before the demonstrations that led to war. You can see her online program, "Syria Then and Now," at https://www.thejerusalemfund.org/25651/syria-then-and-now-2

Electronic images

Barista

Barista in Aleppo, Syria, May 2010
With a tray of cups fastened to his frontside and a flower-topped silver flask strapped onto his back, this red-suited street vendor was selling liquorish drinks to thirsty customers near the entrance to the Citadel in Aleppo, Syria. During my week-long tour of the country in May 2010, I saw other men walking around and selling drinks, but none as brightly dressed as this one.

This is one of the hundreds of photos I shot with my Nikon camera during my motor trip through Syria. Traveling with another woman friend, we hired drivers who took us to the majestic crusader castle known as the Krak des Chevaliers, the Dead City of Serjilla, the ancient city of Aleppo, the desert oasis of Palmyra and its Roman ruins, and the capital city of Damascus. Our timing could not have been better. The country was troubled but at peace, and most people welcomed us and posed for photographs. In 2018, I created a photo book, "Syria Before Revolution," featuring the best of the pictures from the 2010 trip and some short stories of what war damage has done to the scenes in the pictures. To order the book, which is available in four sizes, contact me at mccartney106@gmail.com

More about this image: thejerusalemfund.org

Syrian couple

"Take My Wife's Picture"
Walking along a crowded sidewalk and carrying my big Nikon camera in a busy section of Aleppo, Syria, in May 2010, I heard a man behind me shout: "Take my wife's picture." I turned around and found a smiling couple. "Let me take a picture of both of you," I countered. They agreed, and the man gave me a thumbs up as I framed the picture to try and capture the warmth of their welcome.

Taking photographs of what I see – especially when traveling -- is a way to help me remember, relive and relish the moments. Thankfully, the pictures I shot during my May 2010 trip to Syria make it possible for me now to revisit the people and the places that war has damaged and even destroyed since I was there. I am grateful for what I saw then – during what seemed to be a hopeful time -- and what I can see again now in my photographs. I only wish I knew what happened to all the friendly people I met on that once-in-a-lifetime journey

More about this image: thejerusalemfund.org

Palmyra, Syria

Evening in Palmyra
After a long boring drive from Aleppo south through the desert, we reached Palmyra, the ancient oasis trading center that once served as a link on the Silk Route from China and India to Europe. The Romans sacked Palmyra in the 3rd Century to punish its ruling Queen Zenobia for declaring independence from Rome and printing coins with her image. I took as many photos as possible as the setting sun cast its golden light over the old columns, temples and broken stones

Back home in the U.S., I was horrified by the reports that ISIS fighters had taken over Palmyra and blown up many of its archeological treasures. Even worse was the news that ISIS had beheaded 83-year-old Khaled al-Asaad, the Syrian archaeologist who presided over Palmyra's antiquities. Al-Asaad was born in Palmyra in 1932, and lived there most of his life. He was murdered there on August 18, 2015

More about this image: thejerusalemfund.org

Syrian bakers

"I Love Obama"
We arrived early for dinner at the Al-Khawali restaurant in the Old City of Damascus where we knew we would find tasty Syrian dishes, including the round flat bread so popular in this part of the world. After placing our order, we approached the bread maker and his helper, who were working over a hot oven. "Where are you from?" the bread man asked. We said we came from the U.S. The bread man responded with a joyful "I LOVE OBAMA!" as he twirled and tossed the bread dough onto the hot oven top.

We knew that Al-Khawali's patrons included then-Secretary of State John Kerry, who had made several diplomatic trips to Damascus to try and improve relations with Syria and its president Bashar Al-Assad. As we entered the restaurant, we noticed that the management had posted Kerry's photo in a prominent spot on the wall. But Kerry was not at the restaurant or even in the country that night. Sob

More about this image: thejerusalemfund.org

Print photos

Two Scoops Boy

Two Scoops Boy in Aleppo, Syria, May 2010
This is one of the hundreds of photos of Syria and its people that I took during my week-long tour through the country in May 2010, never imagining that anti-government demonstrations would begin ten months later, leading to revolution, widespread war and violence that continues today. This boy, with his ice cream cones, is the symbol of an earlier and happier time

After reviewing all my photos from Syria, I selected the best for my photo book, "Syria Before Revolution," which offers glimpses into Syria as it was in 2010 as well as an assortment of vignettes telling the story behind specific photos. My photo book comes in four different sizes and prices. For information, contact me at mccartney106@gmail.com

More about this photo: thejerusalemfund.org

Barista

Barista in Aleppo, Syria, May 2010
With a tray of cups fastened to his frontside and a flower-topped silver flask strapped onto his back, this red-suited street vendor was selling liquorish drinks to thirsty customers near the entrance to the Citadel in Aleppo, Syria. During my week-long tour of the country in May 2010, I saw other men walking around and selling drinks, but none as brightly dressed as this one.

This is one of the hundreds of photos I shot with my Nikon camera during my motor trip through Syria. Traveling with another woman friend, we hired drivers who took us to the majestic crusader castle known as the Krak des Chevaliers, the Dead City of Serjilla, the ancient city of Aleppo, the desert oasis of Palmyra and its Roman ruins, and the capital city of Damascus. Our timing could not have been better. The country was troubled but at peace, and most people welcomed us and posed for photographs. In 2018, I created a photo book, "Syria Before Revolution," featuring the best of the pictures from the 2010 trip and some short stories of what war damage has done to the scenes in the pictures. To order the book, which is available in four sizes, contact me at mccartney106@gmail.com

More about this image: thejerusalemfund.org