Syrian Exodus

 We have learnt that multitudes of Syrians were fleeing their country due to civil war. 
 This is a worldwide crisis. 
 What countries are willing to help them? What can we do?

Have you ever wondered what is happening in Syria? Why is this nation falling into pieces? Why are Syrians seeking refuge in different countries of Europe? What is the cause of the Syrian’s exodus? The crisis is getting worse. What can we do?

The Syrian exodus is happening right now and no sign of ending. Many people say Syrians are walking by foot to different countries so that they can get away from their own country. Just like Moses, a man in the Bible who led the Israelites to freedom, to the promised land. But is this Syrian exodus going to help the Syrians to be free? Will it help them live the life they used to have in their own country? We do not know.

As many of us have heard, hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees have fled their country because of a very big crisis happening. It is all because of an Islamic group called the ISIS. This is the reason why many Syrian refugees are trying to go to different parts of Europe. ISIS are terrorizing and torturing many citizens of Syria because they want them to worship and convert into Muslim and want more power. Bashar al-Assad became President of Syria after his father but he never really led his country as well as his father. Instead, he wanted a new way of leading. Firstly, he accepted his people but later on he took away their rights to speak freely. That was the beginning the start of Syria’s civil war. Bashar al-Assad was the one that began the civil war in Syria. Over the years, Syrians have been killed and captured due to the civil war. Bashar al-Assad was captured by the ISIS. No-one knows if the ISIS have oppressed him.  Some cases of death, violent protests and execution ensue in the nation. The protests started in March 2011 and got worse every year.

Syrian refugees pay a lot of euros to get smuggled out of Syria. Usually they are smuggled by boat and are taken across dangerous seas. A family with 2 sons did that and they had unexpected deaths. A father named Abdullah paid two thousand euros for his wife and 2 kids to cross the sea to Europe. The wife was scared and said “I am scared of the water. What if something happens!”  There were many big waves and the captain frantically jumped off the boat because he was scared too, leaving the family and some others alone in the water. Abdullah was the one that took hold of steering the boat. While he was steering, the boat flipped. He held his 2 children and his wife in his arms. He tried to save his family but he was too late. His eldest son named Galip was on his left arm. Galip was dead. Abdullah then looked at his youngest son in his right arm. His youngest son, Aylan Kurdi was dead, with blood coming out of his eyes. Abdullah then let Aylan go. His wife was dead as well. Her body floated on the water like a balloon. Tima, Abdullah’s sister was the one that helped out with the fees of paying the smuggler. All he wants to do now is sit next to his wife and children’s graves.

Countries are asked and sometimes forced to take in more than a thousand refugees. Are you willing to take them? Turkey and Jordan have accepted many refugees. These two countries are near the borders of Syria but Syrian refugees still have to cross seas to get there. Syrian refugees can not go to Iran because Iran have not accepted them even though Iran is close to Syria. Germany has accepted 10,000 refugees and refugees have been going by train to Germany. Western countries like the United States and Great Britain are being asked to take in few numbers of refugees. Are countries scared to accept refugees from a country with many wars? Aren’t leaders scared to put their country in danger? Yes. Many countries have thoughts about this. Sometimes refugees could be infiltrators, ISIS in disguise. This the reason why many countries are scared to accept the Syrian refugees; they may come as undercover as refugees.

Refugees sometimes sleep in train stations and forests. This is because they still don’t have a temporary home. These helpless refugees can no longer go back home to Syria until the civil war ends and no one knows when that would be possible. Sometimes they fear that the countries they hope to enter will turn them down and tell them to go back to Turkey. These refugees are scared and nervous especially because they do not know what will come of them in the future. Will this civil war ever have an end?

We need to help these refugees especially because they have no home country to go back to, suffered  poverty, tired of running  and longed  for security. They need our help! We need unified effort to act as one body to help these refugees. Are you in?

By: Liezl