Refugee children's stories – September 27 2015

"He becomes quiet and thoughtful when there is talk about Syria."


Tarek*, just four years old, is a refugee from Kameshli, Syria.
 
When their home was destroyed, Tarek and his family fled from Syria to Lebanon.
 
He, his brother and single father were living on the street in Beirut, in a cardboard box, relying on the generosity of people who walked by for their survival.

They were found and given places at an SOS Children’s Villages interim care centre in Lebanon, where the brothers now also attend school, allowing their father to look for a job and a home for his family.
 
Tarek says he wants to become a doctor, and make a lot of money; he says he loves SOS Children’s Villages because he’s getting an education there.
 
Tarek talks a lot and laughs and smiles, but he becomes quiet and thoughtful when there is talk about Syria.


Story recorded by photographer Bjørn-Owe Holmberg.
Published 18 September 2015

*The child's name has been changed for privacy.

Read another child refugee's story.

Failed to load widget object.