I’d never imagine I’d would walk in this city as a refugee
When he started to talk about his mom, he seems that he want nothing but to be with her again — Lisette Scholtens
His story
I have a passion for writing and presenting. Especially I love writing poetry. I am working as a journalist for many agencies here in Gaziantep. When I turned 29 in 2009, I had an opportunity to attend a training course in media in the Aljazeera Office, which was located in Damascus by the time. After that, I started working for television. I achieved the first half of my dream.
In 2011, when the incidents started to take place in Aleppo, the regime asked me to make propaganda for it. I refused and they arrested me because of that. When they kept threatening me, I decided to escape. I went to UAE, but I couldn’t afford a residence permit there, so I came to Turkey. I have been here for 4 years. I thought it wouldn’t take that much time to go back home. I thought it was going to be a temporary situation, but unfortunately things got more difficult and complicated in Syria and I don’t know how long it will take. We Syrians are doomed to postpone everything regarding our personal and professional life and we’re hoping that perhaps things get better in the near future. Our lives keeps changing due to many reasons, and that makes us psychologically unstable. Yet, we started to adapt the idea that we are staying for longer here in Turkey.
I have been to Gaziantep before in 2007 for business purposes, though I would never imagine that I would walk in this city as a refugee. I am looking forward to move to Istanbul because many TV channels where I can work are based there. I would like to create an Arabic TV program that targets youth between 20s and 30s. I want to create something.
My family is still in Syria, I live alone in Gaziantep. I miss my mother and my nephews and nieces in Aleppo. I talk with my family everyday on the phone.It has been three years since we’ve seen each other. I can never go there because I would be arrested, and they can’t come here either because the borders are closed. I would like to tell my mom that I miss her so much and I hope that a miracle will happen that gathers us all together. In a few days it is her birthday. I miss everyone so much.
