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In the Jordanian city of Zarqa, Iraqi boys set off for class. As of August, Jordan opened its public schools to Iraqi youngsters, paving the way for eager refugee children to finally resume their disrupted education. But reportedly thousands of Iraqi children are unable to take advantage of the new policy because their families have become destitute the cost of transportation and other expenses. The children largely stay indoors—isolated, despondent, longing for a normal life.
Yossra (left), a former high school teacher in Iraq, is part of a volunteer outreach team set up by the IRC and our partner, Questscope. Yossra goes door to door in districts where Iraqis have settled—counseling out of school children and their parents about available programs. Here, Leila (14), musters up the courage to tell Yossra about her abduction by gunmen in Iraq and the nightmares that won’t go away. Yossra listens, offers comfort, and encourages Leila to come to a youth center funded by the IRC, where she can meet other Iraqi and Jordanian girls.
Assem, 16, brought these books with him when he fled Iraq two years ago. He studies at home now with his siblings in the two room flat where his family lives in Amman. Like most Iraqi refugees in Jordan, his visa expired long ago and his parents worry that he may get picked up and deported during the long walk to and from school. Their fear is understandable. Assem’s younger brother was seriously wounded in a violent attack during such a commute in Basra before they fled. Assem’s parents keep their boys close to them now.
With all these children shut away in congested urban neighborhoods across Jordan, it’s sometimes difficult to find them. But IRC child protection specialists like Frank Roni (left) are working with local partners and Iraqi volunteers to reach the children and offer assistance.
The center is full of life and laughter, with activities and classes led by a caring crew of young Jordanian instructors. For many of the Iraqi kids, it’s the first time in a long time that they are able to go out securely and do normal things that children their age do.
The IRC recently funded this computer room where children study and learn new skills.
The pricey bus fare in Amman keeps Samira, 16, out of school. She was first in her class in Iraq and dreamed of becoming a doctor. Last year her family fled to Amman to escape constant bombings over their Baghdad home. Now she stares at the four walls of a small apartment in East Amman that she shares with six family members. She lives in a state of excruciating boredom with endless hours to conjure up the death and destruction caused by all those explosions.
The bustling youth center in East Amman that Yossra describes began as an after-school program for at-risk Jordanian youth. With IRC’s support, the center has doubled in size and half of the kids that pour in these days are Iraqi refugees.
And once a month, there’s a festive party to celebrate the latest birthdays. For many Iraqi children, these are the first birthday parties they’ve had in years.
“Iraqi children have been exposed to extreme levels of violence and suffering,” says Amanya Michael, who heads the IRC’s programs in the Middle East. “Our goal is to give them a measure of hope—to meet their basic needs and provide them with warm and welcoming places where they can come in safety to learn and laugh and feel happy and secure.”
Working through community organizations, the IRC is supporting 15 programs for children and one counseling center– reaching more than 900 children and their families, 650 of them Iraqi refugees.
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Among the more than four million people uprooted by the crisis in Iraq are hundreds of thousands of desperate children who have lost homes, relatives, friends, and all else that was once safe and familiar. Children in Iraq live in a state of constant fear and the daily violence keeps many from going to school and doing other normal activities. For those who have fled across borders, there are other challenges, including limited chances to resume education. Wherever they are, the violence and displacement has left deep scars.
The IRC’s Melissa Winkler was recently in Jordan where many Iraqis have sought refuge. She reports on the situation for shell-shocked children who settled there and the IRC’s efforts to deliver help and hope. | |
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