RHONDOR DOWLAT
An imam with nine relatives detained in refugee camps in Syria is appealing for them to be returned to T&T as soon as possible.
The imam, who did not want to be identified, said his 58-year-old mother, sister, brother-in-law, four nieces and two nephews are being kept in deteriorating conditions. Two of the children are very ill. His niece, who is 17 years old needs surgery to remove a very painful cyst and a nephew has suffered kidney failure.
The children range in age from 18 to three years old and the youngest was born in the camp.
“My sister’s daughters are anaemic due to the food quality and the amount of food because sometimes they won’t have anything to eat. My niece who has the cyst is frightened about doing the operation because there it is very risky because of the conditions of the camps,” he said.
“My nephew is getting a lot of pain and has to take a lot of medication. My sister has stomach problems and she is also in a lot of pain. My mother cannot walk very good without being assisted. She suffers badly from arthritis and is always in pain.”
The imam said his relatives left for Syria in 2014.
“We got calls from them saying they are in Syria and they explained that it’s really nice, the marketplaces, the mosques.”
He said the family has written to different government ministries seeking assistance to bring them back to T&T and they have received responses but no definite indication that they will be repatriated.
In 2020 the family provided the government with a verification folder containing all the necessary information on birth papers, identification cards and other documents for their relatives in Syria.
The Imam said the family is willing to cover the costs of the repatriations and to send at least two representatives to accompany any state officials to bring their loved ones back to T&T.