Image: SOS Children's Villages
When the civil war in Syria broke out in 2011, Abeer Pamuk had just started studying English literature at the University of Aleppo. Many of her friends have since died, including in explosions at the university in the middle of exams. Abeer worked as a humanitarian worker for SOS Children's Villages and managed to finish her studies. Today she works for an NGO in Washington DC
Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq are countries where violence and fear are part of everyday life. But people study there too. Four students report on their everyday university life in the most dangerous regions of the world.
Studying in Aleppo, Syria
Mosab Zamout, Medicine, University of Aleppo
“Every time I went to university in Aleppo, I thought to myself, 'Maybe I won't get there,' because the bombs were falling around me. There were also students from my courses who died on the way to university. As long as I studied in Aleppo, the university building was intact - thank God it was not hit by bombs. In 2015 I decided to flee to Germany. I want to continue studying medicine as quickly as possible. But that won't be easy, just because of the language. I'm currently taking a language course, but I still have to learn all the medical terms. At least I'm safe here in Germany, and I'm very happy about that. But when the war in Syria is over, I want to go back to rebuild my country. But that won't happen until there is peace there and that won't happen anytime soon. Simply because no one in the world helps.”
Studying in Damascus, Syria
Laila Saati, Economics, University of Damascus
“I started studying in 2006, but it wasn't until 2010 that the situation in Syria became really critical. There were security checkpoints everywhere because there were car bombs and mortar attacks. The male students were always afraid of being drafted into the army - they were only safe from it as long as they studied. Some of them failed the exams specifically to delay their graduation. One of my friends had to join the army and was sent to Homs. He was the only one in his brigade to survive and fled back to Damascus. Then he was tortured and killed because they thought he would join the rebels. Many people from my university died. I was kidnapped by a taxi driver the day before my final exam. But I managed to jump out of the moving car and get to safety. The next day I wrote the exam and passed it. I guess because I had so much adrenaline in my body. Now I’m doing my master’s degree in Duisburg so that I can later work at the UN and rebuild my country.”
Study in Iraq
Sinan Ismael, Computational Engineering, University of Mosul
“My university in Mosul is something like Heidelberg in Germany, one of the best universities in the country. It is a mixed university, with both men and women - for example, there is also a female dean. But since 2003, since the US occupation, almost all women in our country have been wearing a headscarf. The students study together, but there are no hugs or handshakes between men and women. The time when the city was occupied by US soldiers was very chaotic. On the one hand, the insurgents have often attacked US soldiers, resulting in the deaths of innocent civilians. On the other hand, the Americans arrested professors, staff and students because they believed they were terrorists. I've been in Rostock since 2013, not as a refugee, but because I signed a contract with the Iraqi government. Afterwards I will return to Iraq. But I have to see how the situation in my hometown develops because IS has taken control of Mosul.”
Study in Afghanistan
Fahim Shpoon*, Economics, Kabul University
“My country, Afghanistan, is characterized by conflict. I would say it's still a war zone. For a long time, the goal in many schools was to radicalize the population and recruit them for their own military purposes. I went to school in Peshawar, in the north of Pakistan. Calculation problems were, for example, 'How much is a rifle bullet plus another rifle bullet?'. It was pure brainwashing. Even later in university, there were always students who wanted to radicalize you in Islamist ways. The Taliban and other groups exercise much informal control. Because of suicide bombers, taking to the streets in Afghanistan is always a risk. I personally witnessed an attack two or three times. Despite the many conflicts, unlike others, I have hope for my country. After years of people being made stupid or raised to be intolerant, society is now opening up a little.”
*Name changed
Bombs and suicide attacks: Young people talk about their studies in crisis areas.
