Meet Muhammad Najem, a 15-year-old Syrian who enjoys posting selfies like most teenagers. Yet unlike other teenagers, he also documents the horror in Ghouta, Syria, fearful that the next bombing or airstrike will make him and his family victims.
The 15-year-old documenting Eastern Ghouta massacre with selfie videos pic.twitter.com/pIIIjRIdkZ
— muhammad najem (@muhammadnajem20) February 21, 2018
With the recent news of President Trump’s military command to launch airstrikes in Syria in retaliation to the chemical attack used against civilians, it seems as if the media cared about the humanitarian crisis for just one glimpse second again. Yet, concerns and fear about the loss of civilian life should have arisen from the international community way before more an estimated 400,000 Syrians were killed since 2011 (CNN). We often only view short clips on what is happening within Syria or review another report providing an update on the death toll, and it tends to leave no room to hear and allow the everyday Syrians living through it to have their voices heard. Muhammad Najem wants to make sure that happens.
Najem and his family live in Eastern Ghouta, a besieged suburb of Damascus, which has recently been suffering “one of the bloodiest bombing campaigns in the seven-year Syrian conflict” (CNN). Muhammad began tweeting his thoughts in December and shared footage and photographs of children who sustained injuries.
His lost childhood can be seen in his videos he publishes. His school has been destroyed, and he can be seen studying by a candlelight to pursue his education, even in times of destruction. “I’m like any kid in al-Ghouta. Instead of going to school, I go to buy some wood for my mother to cook our lunch. I hope the war ends and we can all go back to school.” This is often said by many children and has been restated constantly for the past seven years.
His messages in his videos are clear: it is an appeal to the world. “We live here under siege,” he said in a recent video posted on Twitter. “The world has forgotten us. They are watching us die of hunger and bombing...Help us and don’t be like the rest of the world.”
There are ways you can help Syrian refugees now:
1. Donate or volunteer with the International Rescue Committee
The IRC has been providing critical humanitarian aid to Syrians since 2012. Check out their website to find opportunities.
https://www.rescue.org/volunteer#how-can-i-volunte...
2. Donate to the White Helmets
https://peoplesmillion.whitehelmets.org/donate/peo...
3. Donate to UNICEF
4. Read and share THEIR stories
Refugee’s stories know no boundaries. It takes extreme courage for anyone to tell their story, and the rest of the globe can help by listening and sharing them to raise awareness.
