Syrian sets up refugee centre
Siret – When 28-year-old Syrian Omar Alshakal saw the exodus of desperate people fleeing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, he knew first-hand what they were going through – and starting thinking of ways to help.
“As a person who came from a war I completely understand how people are scared and fleeing, trying to be safe,” he said, shivering in the freezing temperatures at the Siret border crossing between Ukraine and Romania.
“I try to make sure I help as many people as I can and give them hope for the future,” he said.
The stocky, bearded Alshakal spent periods in detention in Syria, along with countless others who joined protests against the dictatorship of President Bashar al-Assad.
Then, he said, in 2013 he was injured by an explosion close to the car in which he was trying to get injured people to hospital.
After making his way to Turkey to seek medical care, in 2014 he decided with two friends to undertake an arduous swim across to Greek territory, the gateway to the EU where he dreamt of starting a new life.
Following a brief stay in Germany he returned to Greece to help others fleeing and in 2017 founded the Refugee4Refugees association on the island of Lesbos.
Last month, moved by the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Ukraine, he decided to head to Siret, where 130 000 people have crossed the border since 24 February, overwhelmingly women and children.
“I remember the first time at the border I saw a small girl screaming ‘daddy’ and crying,” he said.
His association rented a small hotel a couple of kilometres from the border where they could house between 50 and 100 refugees.
An annex of the building has already been filled with piles of food and hygiene supplies, Alshakal said, while unloading a truck carrying humanitarian aid along with other volunteers.
The site is staffed by around 10 of Alshakal’s colleagues from around the world and the organisation is trying to find more people who can join the effort. Alshakal said he wanted to make those fleeing “feel like we are one family”.