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Podcasts Take Two
'I don't know if this strike will put an end to our suffering': A Syrian refugee's take on the airstrike
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Apr 7, 2017
Listen 8:41
'I don't know if this strike will put an end to our suffering': A Syrian refugee's take on the airstrike
Syrian refugee Jay Abdo fled to Los Angeles to escape fighting in his country, but he's unsure about whether the recent airstrike was the right move.
Actor Jay Abdo speaks during the UN Women USNC L.A. Media Summit in support of #HeForShe at YouTube Space LA at YouTube Space LA on May 21, 2016 in Los Angeles, California.
Actor Jay Abdo speaks during the UN Women USNC L.A. Media Summit in support of #HeForShe at YouTube Space LA at YouTube Space LA on May 21, 2016 in Los Angeles, California.
(
Vivien Killilea
)

Syrian refugee Jay Abdo fled to Los Angeles to escape fighting in his country, but he's unsure about whether the recent airstrike was the right move.

More than 1,000 Syrian refugees live in California, and Jay Abdo is one of them.

"I don't know what to say. It's so hard after these five years," he says.

He was a well-known actor back in Syria, but fled to Los Angeles a few years ago after making critical comments about the Assad government.

Abdo has conflicted feelings about yesterday's U.S. airstrike of a Syrian base.

"The question is, what is the outcome of this strike?" he ponders. "Is it going to save what is left of civilians, or will they have to suffer, afterwards, an Assad retaliation?"

He hemmed and hawed about the outcome, believing that human atrocities are taking place in Syria.

"But striking one airport," he says, "would not immobilize Assad's air force from targeting other civilians with other weapons."

"I don't know if this strike will put an end to our suffering, make the Syrian people go back again," says Abdo.

Listen to the whole interview by clicking the blue audio player above.