Interview Subject
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Contributing Organization
TSOS
Home Country
Syria
Description
Aisha, a Syrian native, lived in Latakia with her Palestinian husband and six children. Their children were not allowed to attend school because of their Palestinian heritage. During the war, mortars and missiles hit the city, and Aisha's brother lost three children. Aisha's uncle in Jordan helped to smuggle their family into Turkey after they decided to escape.
They sailed to Greece with a boat carrying about 350 people. The ship's drivers abandoned it during the journey. To save the children on board, Aisha's husband steered the sinking ship. Her husband was arrested in Greece, and Aisha, who was five months pregnant at the time, hasn't seen him since. She and her children traveled through several countries, including Macedonia and Serbia, sleeping on the muddy ground without food or drink before acquiring the documents they needed to proceed.
Aisha is at ease in Germany, but her children miss their father, and one of her sons was taken away for being disruptive. She is concerned about her husband, who is imprisoned with high blood pressure and heart disease. She wishes life could be the way it used to be.
Document Type
Interview
Interview Date
7-3-2016
Interview Location
Germany
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