My journey from Doctors Without Borders aid worker to Syrian refugee | Global Development Professionals Network | The Guardian

My journey from Doctors Without Borders aid worker to Syrian refugee | Global Development Professionals Network | The Guardian: "I got on a small, seven-metre long boat with 52 other people. Small children sat around me. The driver of the boat was one of us, a refugee, who had never driven a boat before. It was only an hour at sea to reach one of the Greek islands but the engine was too small to carry the weight. When the fuel ran out some of us had to get in the water to drag and push the boat. We were exhausted when we reached land seven hours later. But we had made it.



 My journey started in Syria, where I have seen the situation in my country get worse and worse, with no end in sight. Several rebel groups, most notably what’s called the Islamic State (IS), have now taken over large parts of the country, including my hometown of Raqqa in northern Syria.



 I joined Médecins Sans Frontières‎ (MSF) in 2014, first working as an administrative assistant in Raqqa, later as assistant project coordinator, helping to set up a new project in Tal Abyad. Providing aid, though, became increasingly difficult as the war dragged on and IS started controlling more areas. It was strange, even shocking, to see people I knew joining IS. One of the leaders in the area was a former neighbour of my family. We had lived next to each other for 20 years; now we had to negotiate with him to be able to provide aid."



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