The Bedouin communities living in the unforgiving Badia, or the Syrian desert, are facing a surge in armed attacks. The violence reaches a peak each year between February and April: the truffle season. As tribes go out to hunt truffles, they risk being ambushed by sleeper cells of the Islamic State group, which has taken refuge in the Badia since 2019. This exclusive investigation from FRANCE 24's Observers team exposes the horrific abuses being carried out deep in the desert.
"They were riding dirtbikes. They came up to us and said, 'Get down on the ground', and then they started shooting. They killed everyone except me, they told me to run".
