After three months of construction, the war damage to the middle school in Buwaydah has been repaired. More than 300 children can now go back to school here. We are already working on the next renovation project.
It’s not just the exterior that shines again: the middle school in Buwaydah
By Simon Bethlehem
Bonn, August 22nd, 2025 – The Abd al-Kader Bakkar School in Buwaydah, Syria, looked desolate when we first saw it on New Year’s Eve: a gray block of concrete, stones broken out of the facade, all cables, doors, and windows torn out, bullet holes in the plaster, and a grenade had torn a large hole in the roof. At least it was still standing and could be saved.
Shortly before, Syria had been liberated from Bashar al-Assad’s terrorist regime – and the first refugees had returned to Buwaydah in western Syria, located between Homs and Al-Qusseir.
Back home – and then what?
But returning means more than just being back home. People need work to earn the money to rebuild their homes, and they need prospects for the future. When asked what was most urgently needed, many people in Buwaydah said: school desks and more space for teaching!
No sooner said than done: in February, our local team began welding the first school desks for the elementary school. In April, renovation of the middle school began. Repairing broken walls, plastering and painting, filling holes in the roof with concrete, renewing the electrical system, building and installing doors and windows, repairing floors, retiling sanitary rooms, connecting water supplies, repainting the façade – and, of course, building new school furniture. In total, we made 170 benches, each for two children.
Twelve classrooms and two staff rooms now shine in new splendor. 340 children will be able to attend school here when the new school year starts in September. Our construction team led by Abu Feyrous, with whom we have worked for many years in Aarsal, Lebanon, has done a great job! Many of the team members are now sending their own children to the school they have rebuilt.
Before and after pictures of the school
The new school is seen as a beacon. Located directly on the road between Homs and Al-Qusseir, it immediately catches the eye. People often stop and ask who is rebuilding the school and whether this could also be done in their village.
Reconstruction in Syria stalls
Immediately after Syria’s liberation, countless aid organizations flooded into the country. After almost fourteen years of civil war, everyone wanted to get a picture of the country. Reconstruction was to be tackled as quickly as possible – but little has happened since then. The US and other countries have significantly cut their development cooperation funds, and the sanctions against Syria that initially remained in place made international support difficult. It was not until the beginning of July that President Trump completely lifted US sanctions.
Aid organizations have made commitments to individual reconstruction projects, but hardly any projects have been started or even completed so far. In Buwaydah, our second project was supposed to be the reconstruction of the medical center, but the UN has included the medical center in its reconstruction list, as we were informed by the Coordination Office for Reconstruction in Homs. However, due to organizational difficulties and chronic underfunding of the UN, it is completely unclear when this will begin.
We offered to step in because we could start immediately. But the coordination office declined—so as not to undermine the commitment once made to the UN for the project. So it remains unclear when and whether Buwaydah will get a new medical center.
Pictures of the renovation work
Construction is already underway at the next school
We have now found an alternative: another school, this time in Sallumiya, about 10 kilometers northwest of Buwaydah. This school has also been severely damaged by the war and is currently unusable. Similar to Buwaydah, only the shell of the two-story building remains, so everything except the basic framework has to be rebuilt here as well.
Since mid-July, rubble has been cleared away, brickwork laid, concrete poured, and plaster applied. The school, with its ten classrooms, will in future comprise primary and middle school, i.e., grades 1-10. Our construction team led by Abu Feyrous is also involved again. There is still a lot to do to be ready for the start of the new school year in September.
People are only gradually returning to the town of Sallumiya. The reopening of the school is also intended to be an incentive, a sign that something is being rebuilt here that can be built upon—and thus also to give a glimmer of hope.
The future of Syria depends on reconstruction
The future of Syria stands or falls with reconstruction. If no significant progress is made here in the next six months, the dissatisfaction of the Syrian people will grow and the fragile construct of statehood that is just beginning to establish itself threatens to collapse.
We at Green Helmets can only make a small contribution. But we see in Buwaydah that a renovated school can be a symbol of new beginnings! It gives many people courage – for a better future. With your support, this is exactly what we want to continue.
Urgently In Need of Donations for Reconstruction Projects
For almost seven years now, we have known the families from Buwaydah, who can finally be in their hometown again. We have often imagined how wonderful it would be to support these friends in their return and reconstruction.
