chance to fulfill that dream . Her older brother , Mohammed , became a well-known activist in the family 's hometown of Homs in western Syria , often leading the demonstrations against embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and treating the wounded . `` Protesters would carry Mohammed on their shoulders so he could lead the chants , '' Fares said . `` He was very loved by everyone . The protesters even had a chant they would say for him , using his nickname : ` Abu Ahmed , may Allah protect you ! ' '' Security forces pursued Mohammed Alhusni for months , raiding his family 's home several times , causing the family to flee to a nearby neighborhood on July 25 , Fares said . On July 27 , Zainab Alhusni disappeared , leaving her family devastated and her siblings panicked and anxious , the neighbor said . `` If it had been her brother it would have been different . Taking Zainab , it became a matter of family honor and family pride . Her mother was beyond depressed . She seemed to be between life and death , '' Fares said . Neighbors and family
-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Zainab Alhusni was a simple seamstress in Syria , well-loved by all her neighbors and friends . Now , in a tragic turn of events , she has become a symbol of the cruelty gripping that conflict-wracked nation . Alhusni was only 18 when she stepped away from her Homs residence last month to buy groceries . Her family never again saw her alive . She was whisked away by Syrian security forces to coax the surrender of her activist brother , and ended up beheaded and dismembered , a neighbor , activists and human rights groups say . Waleed Fares , a neighbor and family friend , told CNN on Monday that Zainab 's father died when she was just a toddler , leaving her mother and three siblings to fend for themselves in a country with often-unfavorable conditions for a single mother . All four children dropped out of school at a young age so they could work as laborers to provide for their family , Fares said . Zainab dreamed of owning her own tailor shop , so she could support her impoverished family , he said . But she never had a