Run," the rebels yelled.īut he ignores them, finishes shooting and casually walks away with photos that he will later post on his Facebook page to share with his friends. Mr Fujimoto takes his time getting his shots right, as the rebels he hangs out with shout from both sides of the street. Mr Fujimoto joins Syrian rebel fighters on the front line of the conflict ( AFP) "Most people think I'm Chinese, and they greet me in Chinese," he smiled. "It fascinates me, and I enjoy it," he said, as some FSA fighters stopped him in one of the Old City's streets to have their picture taken with him.
He said that each morning, he walks 200 metres to reach the front to join the firing line with soldiers of the (rebel) Free Syria Army. "It's more dangerous in Syria to be a journalist than a tourist." "It's very exciting, and the adrenaline rush is like no other. "I always go by myself, because no tour guide wants to go to the front," he said. The only way for AFP to interview him was to make use of Google Translate. Mr Fujimoto, who does not speak English and much less Arabic, has picked up a few words, such as "dangerous" and "front line". It's very exciting, and the adrenaline rush is like no other.ĭressed in a Japanese army fatigues and armed with two cameras and a video camera, Mr Fujimoto heads for whatever frontline he can every morning to document the ongoing destruction of Syria's second city and one-time commercial capital. He already spent two weeks in the war-torn country at the end of 2011, taking advantage of a tourist visa, but this time he has entered the country clandestinely from Turkey. Later this year, he plans to hook up with the Taliban in Afghanistan.īut for the moment, he is wrapping up a week's tour of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, which for going on six months has been one of the hottest spots in a conflict that has cost more than 60,000 lives, according to UN figures. He was in Yemen last year during demonstrations at the US embassy and in Cairo a year earlier, during the heady days that followed the ouster of long-time president Hosni Mubarak. Mr Fujimoto's passion has taken him from the dull routine of the highway to Syria, where as part of his latest adventure in the Middle East's hotspots he shoots photos and video while dodging bullets with zest.
Yet while the stocky, bearded 45-year-old could spend his free time getting a jolt of adrenaline by bungee-jumping or shark hunting, he puts his life on the line in a most unusual way.
Japanese truck driver Toshifumi Fujimoto is bored with his humdrum job, a daily run from Osaka to Tokyo or Nagasaki hauling tanker loads of gasoline, water or even chocolate.