Safaa & Ahmad

Safaa & Ahmad

Lebanon

Safaa & Ahmad

Safaa and Ahmad are from Homs and they now live in the Saida region, Lebanon.

Safaa and Ahmad had to come to Lebanon as the war was raging in their country. They had to enter the country illegally when Homs was being bombed.

They now live with their 2 children and in-laws in the back room of a ti/y?re shop in exchange for work. “My father-in-law works here in the tire shop and, instead of getting a salary, they allow us to live here in the back room,” says Safaa. Their living conditions are very hard and they do not receive any financial support.

Ahmad suffers from a form of epilepsy that prevents him from working. “He was born with the illness and it got worse as he grew up. He gets really nervous and he gets epilepsy episodes where his whole body shakes.” He cannot provide for his family and needs medication to treat his illness. However, the family can rely on the free treatment that is offered to Ahmad at the Mouwasat Clinic thanks to the financial support the clinic receives.

Ahmad’s mother is also in poor health. She underwent a mastectomy and is in need of expensive medication. The family needs to work hard to provide her with the treatment she needs.

We need a lot of things... clothes for kids and food but we are getting by. My mother-in-law's treatment is very expensive so we have to take out the cost from our budget but we prioritise it over food because it’s important she gets her medicines.

Despite the challenges they face in their new life, going back to Syria is not an option for them as they have lost everything. “We have no home in Syria and here we can afford to live, as long as we are working.”

© European Union 2019 / Johanna de Tessières