Winter In Syria: A Mother's Worst Nightmare
Iman fled the war in Syria with her four children, but just when she thought they were safe – they faced a threat they couldn’t escape: winter
Iman fled the war in Syria with her four children, but just when she thought they were safe – they faced a threat they couldn’t escape: winter
Iman fled Aleppo with nothing but her four children. But just when she thought her children were safe, they faced a threat she couldn’t shield them from - winter.
As temperatures plummeted, the family’s flimsy shelter was ravaged by snow storms and below freezing temperatures. Wet, cold and without warm clothing, her children faced a harsh Syrian winter unprotected.
He froze to death while she desperately tried to warm his milk. Then just weeks later, her young daughter passed away. Already weak from hunger, she was unable to fight sickness caused by living in the cold, damp shelter.
Almost 8 years of war has displaced families across Syria and surrounding countries. Many children and families live in tents or flimsy shelters made of wood, metal and plastic, which provide little relief from the cold, ice and snow. They risk the facing the same fate as Iman’s family.
They urgently need thermal blankets and winter clothing to protect them from the cold.
Iman and her two remaining sons reached a camp for displaced people within Syria. And with UNICEF support, they received the warm clothing, thermal blankets and medicine needed to keep them safe and warm through winter.
“I live for my children,” says Iman. “I pray for a better life for them.”
UNICEF is working around the clock to source and deliver winter clothing before the worst weather hits. But as each day passes, the urgency to get supplies to the most vulnerable and hard to reach children increases.
Just $61 can give a child an entire set of warm winter clothing to protect them from the cold.
