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Syrian refugee facing deportation to Rwanda

26 October, 2022 12:00 am
4 Min Read

Hussein’s family fled Syria after his father died protesting the Assad regime
By Victoria Munro

Hussein, 24, hoped to finally start a new life in Waltham Forest (credit: Patrick Dowse)
Hussein, 24, hoped to finally start a new life in Waltham Forest (credit: Patrick Dowse)

Campaigners are fighting to stop a 24-year-old Syrian refugee being ripped away from his family and deported to Rwanda, only months after arriving in Waltham Forest.

On 6th November, protesters with the “Hussein Must Stay” campaign will gather in Walthamstow Town Square at noon.

Hussein’s family fled their home in 2015, when he was 17, after his father died opposing the Assad regime and he was ordered to join the army.

He spent five years in Turkey, constantly in danger of being sent back, before making the perilous journey to the UK in the hopes of a better life.

Only months after finally reaching the UK in June, Hussein received a letter giving him two weeks to decide whether to relocate to Rwanda or return to Syria, in both cases alone.

Speaking to the Echo on 25th October, Hussein said: “I ran all this way and over all that time – it took years – and now they want to send me to Rwanda when my family is here. It’s a country that’s worse than Syria, much worse.

“I thought I could finally start a new life and now I don’t think it’s going to happen. I would have loved to open a shop fixing bicycles or maybe computers because I have experience with that.

“I wanted to be at rest and not have to move to another country again, just be here safe with my family because we are tired.

“As a teenager in Syria, I saw a lot of people die. The authorities changed my school into a prison and we could hear all the screams from people inside.”

Hussein’s father died in jail after he was arrested for protesting against the Assad regime and, not long after, the family fled to Istanbul.

(Credit: Patrick Dowse)

Hussein said: “It was difficult to get out of Syria, I got lucky. If the Syrian army catches me, I will go to the army or jail – either way I will end up dead.

“The five years we spent in Turkey were not a happy time. If people there heard you speak Arabic they would tell you to go back to your country and they gave you half the wages of a Turkish person.

“We left Turkey in 2020 because it got worse there; I saw a lot of my friends sent back to Syria. They would be walking on the streets when police would ask for ID and then they would be put in a van and back in Syria the next day.”

Hussein spent at least a year travelling across Europe in a series of trucks, including a six-month period spent living in a forest in an unknown country.

He finally crossed the English Channel by boat this summer and was placed in Waltham Forest, where he began taking a course to improve his English.

However, since receiving the letter from the Home Office, he is afraid to go outside in case he is seized by the police and has stopped attending.

The “Hussein Must Stay” campaign is supported by Care 4 Calais, Waltham Forest Stand Up To Racism, Walthamstow Migrant Centre, Walthamstow Anti Raids Network and more.

Amnesty International activist Ulrike Schmidt told the Echo the campaign is a matter of life or death, adding: “Hussein will most likely get tortured and killed if he returns to Syria.

“I cannot see the anguish and despair in his and his mothers eyes and stand by. We hope the Home Office will be persuaded to let him stay and have his valid claim for asylum heard.”

When contacted for comment, a Home Office spokesperson said: “Rwanda is a safe and secure country with a strong track record of supporting asylum seekers.

“We remain committed to this world-leading Migration Partnership, which will see those who come to the UK through dangerous, illegal and unnecessary routes relocated to Rwanda to rebuild their lives there.

“Everyone in scope for relocation to Rwanda will be individually assessed, and no one will be relocated if it is unsafe or inappropriate for them.”

Sign the petition to support Hussein Must Stay here.

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