Yes, Syrian

Yes, Syrian
In the prison van,
handcuffed to a child,
shocked, exhausted,
I try to reassure him.

They picked me up from the road.
I was bringing bread to my mother.
I did nothing.
They only asked me:
Are you Syrian?

Yes, Syrian.
Yes, Syrian.
Yes.
Yes.
Yes.

Mohamad Zaal Alsalloum is a Syrian poet, writer, translator and journalist, born in Damascus in 1979 and based in Lyon, France. His work explores Syria, exile, memory, war, freedom and the human condition, and has appeared in literary publications in several countries. The poems were originally written in Arabic and are submitted here in English renderings.