Syria: Heartbreak and hope: Aleppo shops reopen amid devastation

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Aleppo is to Syria what New York City is to the United States. It was Syria's modern day financial center, and the western end of the ancient Silk Road. But the eight-year-long Syrian civil war turned the city into ruins. Now local shops are struggling to restart their business in the middle of devastation. CGTN's Han Peng reports.

The dawn of a new beginning for Aleppo. But the horror of war can still be seen in the children's eyes.

HAN PENG ALEPPO "This is the heart of Aleppo, where the heaviest fighting took place. Before the war, all these were busy, fancy shops, surrounding a picturesque and famous tourist site -- a medieval citadel. The irony is that during the war, it once again became a military facility that witnessed some of the bloodiest fighting."

In the brutal street battles, neither the government nor the rebel fighters hesitated to use heavy weapons.

House by house, Syrian forces took back the city by the end of 2016.

But the locals in the once Aleppo's downtown CBD are struggling with a harder battle to take back what they lost.

Yousef Sawaha had a booming silk business in the prime location of the tourist zone.

He'd been selling to visitors from around the globe a centuries-old token of peace on the Silk Road, until the war broke out.

YOUSEF SAWAHA ALEPPO SHOP OWNER "After the city was liberated, I returned and reopened my shop. But over the past year, very few people came."

He says he still sticks around in his shop not because he's waiting for customers.

He's simply keeping an eye on his property to prevent further damage.

During the war, his shop was occupied by rebel forces as a barrack.

YOUSEF SAWAHA ALEPPO SHOP OWNER "This used to be a finely decorated fireplace, but the enemies used it as a stove to keep warm and cook. Now it's been completely burned. The ceilings, which I spent a lot of money to decorate, were too damaged to be repaired."

He says he lost a total of 100 million Syrian pounds, or 200 thousand US dollars because of the war.

And loss is not only suffered by locals.

HAN PENG ALEPPO "Local Syrians told me that this used to be a very busy trading hub. Merchants from across the globe lived here and also they traded here, bringing products from all across the world. Here we can see fine marbles on the ground and also traces of business."

As Syria's largest city, Aleppo has a long history of trade that dates back to over a thousand years ago.

But the eight years of war destroyed a third of its ancient buildings, many beyond repair.

ZAKARIA SANDI ALEPPO CONSTRUCTION WORKER "This building was hit by a rocket missile. The main structure has been badly damaged, and the building may collapse at any time."

Because of a lack of funding, Syrians are rebuilding Aleppo with their bare hands, brick by brick, the city inches toward recovery. Han Peng, CGTN, Aleppo, Syria.