In the heart of Aleppo, besieged by Syrian troops for more than five weeks, a young couple who found love in a time of war exchange vows.

Bombs dropped in the distance, but for a moment, those attending the modest wedding ceremony in the Saif al-Dawla neighbourhood of Syria's second city were able to forget about the bloody conflict.

The marriage was between rebel sniper Abu Khaled and Hanan, the nurse who treated his leg wound.

The 20-year-old remembers falling in love with Hanan "at first sight."

"I saw her at the Coneta school first aid point. From first sight, I loved her. Then I got shot in my leg and she was cleaning my wounds everyday and, day by day, I know her better and love her more," says Abu Khaled, his beard closely trimmed.

His account of the beginning of their love evokes a smile from his bride, who blushes under her make-up.

"When we met there was something in the air," recalls the 23-year-old woman whose wedding attire amounted to a white scarf and her nursing blouse.

And when Hanan lost her brother in the bloody violence that has roiled Syria since March 2011, Abu Khaled began to support her.

"(Our love) became stronger when my brother was killed," says the nurse sitting beside Abu Khaled, who wears a military jacket with many pockets.

"And he is a revolutionary sniper!" she adds, smiling again.

The bride and groom sat on big chairs, according to custom. Behind them, a large revolutionary flag hung on the wall.

They sliced a chocolate cake as activists waved signs that declared: "We love life, and are still here."

A commander of the Free Syrian Army, patchwork of deserters and civilians who took up arms to fight the forces of President Bashar al-Assad, delivered a speech and the exchange of rings came under a rain of confetti.

The ceremony then moved outside, where tables covered with towering bowls of fruit were prepared.

Guests congratulated Hanan and Abu Khaled as activists encircled the newly weds and chanted slogans of the revolution against the Assad regime.

"Freedom, we want freedom!" they sang.

"No one can stop life. No one can stop people. No one can stop who goes with God," joked one guest, a member of Abu Khaled's brigade who held a Kalashnikov assault rifle in his hands.

A few blocks away, columns of smoke rise from collapsed buildings as other parts of the city held by the outgunned rebels are struck by shelling from government forces. (AFP)

<관련 한글 기사>

사랑에 빠진 저격수와 간호사, 전쟁중에...


시리아 정부군과 반군이 격렬하게 교전하는 상업 중심지 알레포 한복판에서 젊은 연인이 사랑의 서약을 하고 반지를 교환했다.

몇 블록 밖 포격으로 무너진 건물에서는 연기가 치솟았지만 2일(현지시간) 사이 프 알다울라 지역에서 열린 조촐한 결혼식에서 신랑 신부와 하객들은 피비린내나는 전쟁을 잠시나마 잊었다.

반군 저격수인 신랑 아부 칼레드(20)는 자신의 다리를 치료한 간호사 하난(23)에게 첫눈에 반했다고 했다.

칼레드는 "학교에 있는 응급처치소에서 처음 보고 사랑에 빠졌다. 그러다 다리에 총알을 맞았는데 하난이 매일 상처를 소독했고 하루하루 지날수록 더 깊이 알고 사랑하게 됐다"고 말했다.

군용 재킷을 입은 신랑이 사랑 이야기를 풀어놓자, 간호사복에 흰색 스카프를 걸친 신부는 얼굴을 붉히며 미소를 지었다.

하난이 이번 내전에서 형제를 잃었을 때 칼레드가 위로해주면서 둘의 사랑은 더 굳건해졌다.

이날 신랑과 신부는 관습에 따라 큰 의자에 앉았다. 뒤로는 대형 혁명 깃발이 벽에 걸렸고 반군 지휘관이 인사말을 했다.

참석자 일부는 신랑 신부를 둘러싸고 "우리는 자유를 원한다"면서 혁명 구호를 외쳤다.

칼레드와 같은 소속의 한 병사는 "누구도 세상살이를 막을 수는 없다. 신과 함께 있는 사람들을 막을 수 있는 자도 없다"고 말했다.