Life In Transit (Basit)



The Moussa Daghians stayed on the Bassit seashore for fortyfive days. Small huts of mud, sheets or branches were the only protection against the bitter cold of the nights. Morale was low. Hunger, separation and the unhealthy conditions at Bassit made many people sick.Water was the main reason of dysentery. The AGBU aid central commitee established a field hospital in Latakia (30 kms to the south of Bassit). More than 200 patients were treated there. Severe cases were transferred to Beirut. More than five thousand Mousadaghians had to endure the terrible days in Bassit. They had to dance, in pitch darkness to keep their wet bodies warm.16 Mousadaghians lost their lives in Bassit. In spite of dysentery and the loss of homeland, the Mousadaghians did not give in to despair. They were ready to endure the harsh realities of life rather than live under the cursed turkish law!