Humans of West - Humans of Kurdistan

“My love story is beautiful and amusing at the same time. When my husband was young, he was friends with my brothers so he would come to our house a lot. I never felt that he had feelings for me because I was young. I remember, he would do funny faces so he could draw my attention but I never looked at him, or he would go to the roof of our neighbor's house to draw my attention. Everyone around me, from the neighbors to my friends and family members knew about his love for me except me. When I found out, I was in shock because he was like a brother to me, and for the same reason, I rejected his love several times. A lot of elderly people talked to me but I still refused to accept. At the end, I thought about it seriously and he was the perfect one, he is someone who loves me and respects me and he would do anything I asked for. We were engaged for a while and then got married. Now, we have three kids. It’s been 17 years and to this day I'm very happy with him. I have never regretted marrying him because I always get my support, abilities, and energy from him”. ...

May 07 2021

May 7, 2021

“When I was young, my father bought me a camera, he said I will teach you how to use a camera so you have your own. He taught me how to use the camera for a whole year. In 1975 I started to work at Al-Tabqah city. After that in 1986, I transferred my job to my hometown, Afrin and I opened a photography studio with the name Studio 21 because of March 21. Syrian Armed Forces didn’t allow the name, so I changed the name to Studio 23, not to get arrested. With the start of the Syrian and Western revolution and the eviction of the Syrian government forces from Afrin, I renamed my studio, Studio 21. Despite working at the studio, I would visit Afrin's village and mountains to take pictures and turn them into an archive. In 2018 when Turkey started to seize Afrin we moved to Qamishli. After a few days, on social media I saw that my studio had been burnt down and was turned into a butcher shop. I lost most of the archives that I had collected from 1975, I got really upset when I saw that scene. Even if I have one day left of my life, I will return to Afrin and build my studio again”. ...

May 05 2021

May 5, 2021

“To help my husband with our household's expenses, I have been working as a tailor for 5 years now and I like my job. I have learned tailoring from YouTube videos and after we left Sari Kani and were placed into the camps, I bought a sewing machine by monthly payments to start my job, I started from our tent. The tent was my working place and our shelter for living. I sewed dresses for my customers by monthly payments, because their income wasn’t enough. I sew dresses for 3,000 Syrian Pound which is less than 1 dollar. I graduated from the College of education at Al Furat university. But I couldn't use my certificate to work because of all the fights and staying in the camps. I'm hoping that we can go back to our place and leave the camps because living in the camps is very difficult. I never thought that a day will come and I will be living in a camp”. ...

May 01 2021

May 1, 2021

“I care a lot about the future, I always have. I have wanted to write and become a well-known Kurdish poet since I was a kid. Believing in the future is essential in building one's confidence to achieve their goals. Most of my dreams have come true due toy writings, whether they are poems or short speeches. The constant support of my family has made me more confident and more successful in my life. I started putting my feelings into writing, everything I felt in my life was on paper. Despite all the wars that are happening in our area, women are prisoners of our traditions and culture. It is a shame for women to work, they believe only men can work. Nevertheless, the situation is much better now, women exist in all industries. I still have the same dreams as I did as a child, and one day I will become a well-known Kurdish poet”. ...

Apr 22 2021

April 22, 2021

“The most difficult time in my life was when I was 14 and my brother went to South of Kurdistan, my parents encouraged him to leave due to the war that was happening in our city. We were in a really bad state the day before he left. He was our protector. We were used to him being around us at all times, and come to school with us, and play with us. He was our only protector in difficult times. One evening my mother packed his stuff, and the next day early in the morning we took him to the boarder and said goodbye, it was the most difficult time of my life. A year has passed, and even though we are constantly communicating through social media, we are yet to get used to him being away. I hope my brother returns, and all other people who have migrated return to their families”. ...

Apr 19 2021

April 19, 2021

“One day while I was participating in a sports event in Latakia, I received the news that ISIS had attacked the villages around Khabour, and my village is there as well. I quickly returned to my village to defend our land. After a few days, ISIS attacked our village and we couldn't hold on much, we retreated. Some of my friends were martyred along with Evana Hoffman who was a fighter from Africa fighting on our side, I was very sad. After ISIS's invasion, some of the people went to Europe and some went to safer cities like Qamishlo and Hasakah. ISIS destroyed the church in the village, which was built more than 80 years ago, and that motivated us to liberate our village. After four months between ISIS and Khabour protection forces and YPG we were able to liberate the village that they had destroyed. Today, the 150 Asyrian families that were living in the place have all left, only my wife and I are left here. We wish that stability comes back to this please and the families return”. ...

Apr 17 2021

April 17, 2021

“I worked in a restaurant that was serving barbecue in Sarekani for 40 years. After our city was invaded by Turkey in 2019, we migrated to a camp near Tal Tamr. After we were settled, I had to start working again to provide a living for my family. I set up a trolley to sell (Mushabak), a type of sweet that's well known there. I sell a kilo for a dollar, which is way lower than Bazaar's price, and that's because I pay no taxes or shop rents, and the IDPs can't spend much money. I'm very happy with my work, I even have customers from outside of the camp. However, I can only work during the winter, in the summer not many people by my product. Therefore, I search for other jobs during the summer because I can't afford being idle”. ...

Apr 12 2021

April 12, 2021

“Losing my grandparents several years ago was among the worst things that's happened to me. I lost my grandfather in 2008, and my grandmother in 2013. Even though I was just a kid, but I was really sad. I looked at my grandmother one last time before they bury her because I knew it was going to be the last time. I felt heart broken, and tears streamed down from my eyes. My father found it very difficult to tell me the news; you'd be very lucky to have grandparents like them. My grandmother used to put to me to sleep and take me everywhere with her. My grandfather used to always give me money. They were really good people, they used to always support me, and for me they were like my parents. Their passing was such a surprise to us, and I still get very sad when I think about it”. ...

Apr 04 2021

April 4, 2021

“When Turkey started their attacks on Afrin, we were trying to hide from their airstrikes in the caves. I was pregnant back then and was about to have a baby, the day they took me to the hospital, the hospital was under the threat of being destroyed, there were rumors that it was going to be hit by airstrikes. I was very nervous until I had the baby, and after a week of giving milk to my baby, I couldn't do it anymore because I was so scared when I used to hear the sound of the airstrikes. Our financial situation was bad, I was sometimes only giving the babe water and salt to eat. We left our city and there was only one way out. Our car broke down and we had to walk to survive. I had my two weeks baby and I didn't even feel the pain of my surgery at the time. A car stopped and picked us up until we got to safety. I have gone through some difficult times, but I still hope that we will one day have our city safe and free again”. ...

Apr 01 2021

April 1, 2021

“During the 1980s, I was a young girl living in the village, practicing our old traditions and culture. My brother wanted to get married to a girl in the village next to ours, and back then when you wanted to get married, but didn't have the money to fund the marriage, you could give your sister to one of their sons as a wife. They weren't even asking the girl if she wanted to get married or not. I got married and lived with my husband, but because we didn't know each other well, and didn't understand each other we had many problems. Nevertheless, I ultimately accepted the fact that it was my life and I needed to adapt. Due to my husband's job, who was a moving farmer, we used to move a lot. My husband decided to buy a car and move to the city, he used to go to work for weeks and not come back. During that time, I used to practice sewing to help out. I am no 70 years old and things have changed a lot. Women can speak up for their rights nowadays”. ...

Mar 28 2021

March 28, 2021