Quebecers open arms to Syrian refugees

MONTREAL— When the airplanes passed over the Syrian city of Hama, Nawal Jzdan’s family would crowd into the bathroom of their apartment and cower in fear until the threat of errant bombs dropping from the sky had passed.

On Saturday night, the sound of jet engines was the first instalment of what Jzdan’s family, who now live in Laval, Que., consider a blessing. Jzdan’s 23-year-old nephew, Eyad Kannab, was one of 161 Syrian refugees to arrive in Montreal on a military flight from Beirut.

It’s a blessing they credit to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

“Thank you, Canada. Thank you, Quebec. Thank you, Mr. Trudeau. He said it and he did it,” said Jzdan’s husband, Antoin Kanou.

Of the refugees on the first flight to land in Montreal, which is home to Canada’s largest Syrian expatriate population, all but one were being privately sponsored by relatives, churches and other groups in Quebec’s largest city and its suburbs of Laval and Longueuil, federal immigration officials said.

One person on the flight was heading on to Charlottetown, P.E.I.

“I try to put myself in their place. They are going to be looking into your faces for smiles and for the word ‘welcome,’ ” Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard told a group of Red Cross volunteers who were waiting to greet the refugees.

“We are going to show once again, as we have done several times already in Quebec and in Canada — what we are capable of, how we welcome people and the way that we respond to war, violence and terrorism.”

Preparations for the refugees have been particularly spirited in Montreal. The group Fondation Je Veux Jouer (I Want to Play Foundation), has organized an early Christmas party next week for the newcomers.