In a humble tent sewn from cloth, Samah, 30, lives with her two sisters and brother in the harsh conditions of displacement in western Aleppo countryside.
Samah’s life was completely turned upside down after she lost her parents as a result of the shelling that targeted the city of Sinjar in Idlib countryside, where her family lived, and then Samah found herself responsible on her family, besides the responsibility of taking care of her brother Salim 18 and her sister Samar 19 who have Down’s syndrome since she is the older sister who used to spend time with them, along with her younger sister, Salma, 26.
“We escaped at night from the constant shelling, we couldn’t take anything with us but our old and torn clothes. We headed north till we reached Aleppo countryside, we had no shelter, it was summer and the sun burns like a hell!. I could manage to get a few pieces of cloth and made a tent to become our new home. I had to do whatever it takes to find shelter for me and my family” Samah said.
Samah is the only breadwinner for her family and she works all day during the hot summer and cold winter in harvesting crops to be able to meet the basic needs of her family, and because of her absence at work she was not able to take care of her brother Salim and sister Samar and spend time with them as they used to before the displacement and the death of her parents.
Ihsan Relief and Development, in partnership with the World Food Program (WFP), provides monthly food aid to 34,000 from the most vulnerable families in northern Syria. IhsanRD team reached Samah’s family and provide them with a monthly food basket to help them withstand the harsh circumstances surrounding them.
The monthly food basket they received removed a huge burden of securing food on a daily basis, and now, Samah has more time to take care of Salim and Samar. Samah told us about their hopes that one day they will return home.