Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 5 of 5
Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences
Ali, Ali, Twila Bird
Ali, Ali, Twila Bird
TSOS Interview Gallery
At eighteen fate placed Ali and his family in the center of hostilities in northern Afghanistan. Warring militant factions killed hundreds of people in his village. Ali helped identify and bury dozens of his friends and neighbors in a mass grave.
We spent days and nights in the mountains and blocked on the borders. I crossed the mountainous border between Afghanistan and Pakistan walking with my handicap. Then it took us another sixteen hours to cross the border between Pakistan and Iran, also in very high mountains of more than 2500 meters. The Iranian police were killing people on the …
Layla, Layla, Tsos
Layla, Layla, Tsos
TSOS Interview Gallery
Layla left Ethiopia 10 years ago to look for work opportunities. She left behind a father and three brothers. She went to Syria on a three-year work contract. She worked in a house and learned Arabic. She then went to Turkey by boat and then went on to Greece for 5 years. She worked and learned the Greek language. When she became pregnant she had to stop working. She travelled to Serbia to Macedonia to Austria all on foot. Then the Red Cross moved Layla and her daughter to Giessen, Germany where a roommate periodically beat her baby. Seeking safety …
Aisha, Aisha, Tsos
Aisha, Aisha, Tsos
TSOS Interview Gallery
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 …
Tabish, Tabish, Tsos
Tabish, Tabish, Tsos
TSOS Interview Gallery
Tabish is from Afghanistan. He fled the country because he had enemies there. He was shot multiple times during a Taliban raid, resulting in a broken leg and damaged hand. The bullets had to be pulled out with a stick. He and his family fled Afghanistan to Iran where the police threatened to arrest him for not having the legal papers to work. His family escaped to Turkey but were soon deported back to Iran. They eventually made it through after walking on foot for seven hours at the Turkish border. After spending five hours on the water on the …
Zurvan, Zurvan, Tsos
Zurvan, Zurvan, Tsos
TSOS Interview Gallery
Zurvan and his family had a good life in Afghanistan. He worked as a clerk in a spice shop. After doing business with a foreign company, the Taliban threatened him with death. To escape this threat, he and his family escaped to Iran and hired a smuggler to get them to Turkey. From there, they traveled to Greece in an overloaded boat. They have been living in a camp in Greece, stuck in limbo, ever since. Zurvan feels hopeless, like everyone in the camp is being treated in an inhumane manner. He also feels guilty for bringing his children into …