Jordan 2015
“If we, as an international community, and as individuals, cannot bridge the funding gap, then we will increasingly see extremely vulnerable families forced to resort to desperate and dangerous coping mechanisms in order simply to survive. An old Syrian proverb says, “Patience is the key to relief.” But millions of Syrians need relief now. Patience is a luxury they, and we, cannot afford.”
When Khaled visited Jordan in March 2015 the Syrian conflict was in its fourth year and had produced 3.9 million refugees. Khaled travelled with UNHCR to meet Syrian families living in the refugee camps and cities of Jordan.
Jordan was hosting over 625,000 refugees, 84 per cent of whom were living in urban areas away from the safety net that camps can provide, making them more susceptible to exploitation, abuse and dangerous survival mechanisms such as prostitution, child labour or forced marriage. Khaled met families benefiting from UNHCR’s Lifeline Appeal and wrote about the vital support it provides.
Khaled also listened to the stories of Syrians living in Za’atari and Azraq refugee camps and wrote a feature article published in multiple countries, posted daily blogs to Fusion snapchat and undertook a number of live interviews with major news outlets to highlight the ongoing crisis.