Refugees Daily - Internal Global Press Review

"If you give me a job right now, I'll take it."

Mohamad's words, translated from Arabic, came with a smile and a laugh in response to a reporter's question, but they probably capture both the aspiration and uncertainty of the latest Syrian refugee family to arrive in Ottawa.

Mohamad, 45, his wife Nirmeen, 28, and their four children – three boys and a girl, including seven-year-old twins Mohamad and Abdullah, four-year-old Zaid and three-year Lyana – landed in Ottawa Tuesday afternoon. It was a long way from the Syrian city of Homs they had to flee when it was repeatedly shelled.

The parents – their family name is not being used as they still have relatives in Homs – is being sponsored by the Ottawa South Committee for Refugee Sponsorship, some of whose members were at the airport to greet them. When the refugees finally descended the escalator to the arrivals level they were met with smiles, applause and, of course, small Canadian flags for the children.

Mohamad and Nirmeen were also smiling, but their smiles were more uncertain and even shy. At first reluctant to speak, they eventually expressed relief at having arrived in Canada and gratitude toward their sponsors.

"We are very happy to arrive in Canada," said Nirmeen, speaking through translator Saida Belas, herself a one-time refugee to Canada from Algeria. "You are very, very fine people."

Saida Belas, right, greets young Lyana along with her brothers, mother and father at the Macdonald-Cartier International Airport in Ottawa Tuesday December 22, 2015. The family of 6 is privately sponsored through a group endorsed the the Trinity United Church.

Relying on the translator, Nirmeen haltingly explained how the family fled Homs nearly four years ago when it was bombarded, whether by Syrian forces, the so-called rebels or both, she wasn't sure. "There was shelling but we don't know by whom. We just left everything, everything."

The family spent about a year in Cairo before going to Beirut in Lebanon, where they spend another two-and-a-half years. "Our lives have been completely changed," said Nirmeen. "We had very hard times."

In Homs, Mohamad supported his family as a carpenter and bus driver. In Cairo, he worked as a shoe salesman. And he was lucky enough to have a brother in Saudi Arabia who helped out with the money.

They won't have to worry about money for a while. Their sponsors have raised some $50,000, enough to take care of the family's needs – everything from food and clothing to English-language tutoring and furnishings for a rented apartment on McArthur Avenue.

Robert Taylor, a member of the sponsorship committee, said the group has tried to anticipate whatever the family might need, including psychological help. "Anybody who's been a refugee for this length of time has gone through circumstances that are inevitably traumatic," he said. "We know almost nothing about the family, but we understand one or more of the adults were the victim of violence at one time."

Lyana, left, walks with her mother, Nirmeen, center, and a local supporter and interpreter, Saida Belas, through the Macdonald-Cartier International Airport after arriving in Ottawa from TorontoTuesday December 22, 2015. The Syrian family of 6 is privately sponsored through a group endorsed the the Trinity United Church.

Questions about any violence they may have endured were understandably off-limits, but Taylor made the point of emphasizing that refugees like Mohamad and Nirmeen are fleeing terror and violence. "They are not terrorists, they are victims of terrorism."

More are expected to arrive in January when Taylor's group plans to take in another Syrian family. "The tragedy (in Syria) is so massive that how can you not do something when you have the opportunity to become involved."

Perhaps by then Mohamad and Nirmeen will be able to help them settle. Mohamad may even have that coveted job.

"I am happy to be here ... (but) I want to work," he said as he gathered his family and their worldly goods – five suitcases in all – and followed their sponsors to a new life.