Female Syrian doctor talks about challenges treating war victims from underground hospital
Dr. Amani Ballour chronicles her journey in a new book.
For over a decade, Dr. Amani Ballour has helped treat Syrians who have been caught in the crossfire of the violence in their country.
She became the only woman to ever run a wartime hospital in Syria.
In her new book, "The Cave: A Secret Underground Hospital and One Woman's Story of Survival in Syria," Ballour details her hard work at the hospital and her perseverance through the male-dominated environment.
She spoke with ABC News' Linsey Davis about her career.
ABC NEWS LIVE: So "The Cave" is really a personal memoir but, at the same time, you also really humanize the crisis going on in Syria by telling other people's stories. Why was it so important for you to do it in this way?
AMANI BALLOUR: Well, it's very important to me because it's my reality. It's my life. I was born there in Syria, and I wanted to tell the whole truth for everyone around the world.
I wanted to tell all the people that we were innocent people. The people in Syria started to protest to get some human rights, democracy, [and] freedom, which we don't have in Syria.
And immediately the Syrian regime started to shoot the people, kill them and then bomb us.
I saw in front of my eyes the innocent children who just do nothing, just because they live in the place, so they are being bombed. I saw the fear in their eyes. I saw the victims, many, many children who died and many children who are starving, who were suffering.
I wanted to tell their stories. Tell everyone about these people and about other people who are still suffering now.
ABC NEWS LIVE: You write about how it was so important to you to stay there at the hospital, despite the dangers. And, in particular, you say, "I wanted to be where I was needed. That's why we all stayed there in that underground hospital." How did providing care for others also provide a sense of hope for you at the same time?
BALLOUR: Exactly. I studied medicine because I wanted to help people, and I wanted to be a pediatrician to help with children because I love children. And when I see the children really needed help and, unfortunately, many doctors decided to leave, I said, "It's simple." This is the time when they need me to help them and I have to stay.
It was very hard circumstances between blood and destruction every day. We were a target of bombings.
So I was suffering with these people.
ABC NEWS LIVE: You're also the subject of the Academy Award-nominated documentary "The Cave"…Tell us about some of the challenges that you face as a female doctor.
BALLOUR: Yeah, that was frustrating. I mean, I'm from a conservative community. I know my community. I know that we have traditions and customs against women. They don't like to see a woman in a position that controls men.
When I became the manager of the hospital, they said, "No, we don't want a woman in this position." That was frustrating to me, but that was also a challenge and that motivated me to do more. So to continue doing this, because I wanted to change this idea about women. I wanted to prove that women can do more and women can lead, [and] women can do everything.
And I believe that I did my best for the hospital, and I believe that it was very good hospital at that time.
