This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/04/nyregion/fleeing-syria-and-ending-up-in-new-jersey.html
The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Fleeing the Bombs in Aleppo, Syria, and Ending Up in New Jersey | Fleeing the Bombs in Aleppo, Syria, and Ending Up in New Jersey |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| PATERSON, N.J. — They had heard the bombs before, but never this close. They gathered whatever was at hand — a purse, a bag containing their passports — ran out of their house in Aleppo, in northern Syria and headed on foot to a quieter neighborhood. There, they figured, they would wait out the fighting and return home. | PATERSON, N.J. — They had heard the bombs before, but never this close. They gathered whatever was at hand — a purse, a bag containing their passports — ran out of their house in Aleppo, in northern Syria and headed on foot to a quieter neighborhood. There, they figured, they would wait out the fighting and return home. |
| But the explosions seemed to follow them, like a slow-moving thunderstorm. So on that afternoon in July 2012, the family — Abdulrazak, Marim and their four children — pushed on, from one neighborhood to another. Finding no respite, they got a ride across the border into Lebanon and then south to Beirut. | But the explosions seemed to follow them, like a slow-moving thunderstorm. So on that afternoon in July 2012, the family — Abdulrazak, Marim and their four children — pushed on, from one neighborhood to another. Finding no respite, they got a ride across the border into Lebanon and then south to Beirut. |
| Their migration had only begun. Within weeks they would be on the move again, to Cuba, and eventually to Paterson, N.J., where they finally arrived last November, among the first of a small number of Syrians refugees to be resettled by the United States as a direct result of the three-year-old Syrian conflict. | |
| “We did not plan to go to Beirut, only to leave the neighborhood until the shelling was over,” said Abdulrazak, 48. “I was never thinking of going to the States.” | “We did not plan to go to Beirut, only to leave the neighborhood until the shelling was over,” said Abdulrazak, 48. “I was never thinking of going to the States.” |
| The family is part of one of the largest refugee exoduses in recent history — more than two million Syrians have fled their country since the start of the war in 2011, and the United Nations predicts that the numbers could exceed four million by the end of this year. | The family is part of one of the largest refugee exoduses in recent history — more than two million Syrians have fled their country since the start of the war in 2011, and the United Nations predicts that the numbers could exceed four million by the end of this year. |
| With no end to the conflict in sight, pressure has been mounting on the international community to step up its efforts to help alleviate a worsening humanitarian crisis. | With no end to the conflict in sight, pressure has been mounting on the international community to step up its efforts to help alleviate a worsening humanitarian crisis. |
| Abdulrazak and his family are in the vanguard of what is expected to be a small but gradually growing stream of refugees resettling in the United States this year. | Abdulrazak and his family are in the vanguard of what is expected to be a small but gradually growing stream of refugees resettling in the United States this year. |
| Speaking through an Arabic interpreter on a recent afternoon, the family members told the story of their flight while sitting in their sparsely furnished apartment, which occupies the second floor of a well-worn clapboard-style house in Paterson. | Speaking through an Arabic interpreter on a recent afternoon, the family members told the story of their flight while sitting in their sparsely furnished apartment, which occupies the second floor of a well-worn clapboard-style house in Paterson. |
| “If we didn’t fear for our lives, we wouldn’t have left our country,” said Marim, 37. “Our country is very precious to us.” The family asked that their last name not be used, for fear that relatives still living in Syria might be targeted. | “If we didn’t fear for our lives, we wouldn’t have left our country,” said Marim, 37. “Our country is very precious to us.” The family asked that their last name not be used, for fear that relatives still living in Syria might be targeted. |
| Soon after arriving in Beirut, they learned that their house had been destroyed in the bombing. “At that point, I lost hope to go home,” Abdulrazak said. | Soon after arriving in Beirut, they learned that their house had been destroyed in the bombing. “At that point, I lost hope to go home,” Abdulrazak said. |
| The family consulted with officials at the United States Embassy in Amman, Jordan, and with officials of several European Union nations, but they were given no hope that they would all be able to get visas. | |
| Coincidentally, the family had been planning to take a vacation in Cuba and had already been issued tourist visas. So they decided to try their luck there. “It was a gamble,” Abdulrazak said, “but it was better than Syria and Lebanon.” | |
| They flew to Havana in September 2012, and the family applied for refugee status through an office of the United Nations, Abdulrazak said. While they waited for the outcome of their petition, the children attended Spanish classes at a private school for foreigners; the United Nations paid the rent for the apartment where they stayed, he said. | They flew to Havana in September 2012, and the family applied for refugee status through an office of the United Nations, Abdulrazak said. While they waited for the outcome of their petition, the children attended Spanish classes at a private school for foreigners; the United Nations paid the rent for the apartment where they stayed, he said. |
| They were approved for admission to the United States in October and flew to Miami on Nov. 19. The following day they flew into Newark, where they were met by relatives, who took them to their new home in Paterson, which has one of the largest Arab populations in the United States. (There are some 175,000 people of Syrian descent living in the United States, according to the Census Bureau, with about 28,000 living in the New York metropolitan area.) | They were approved for admission to the United States in October and flew to Miami on Nov. 19. The following day they flew into Newark, where they were met by relatives, who took them to their new home in Paterson, which has one of the largest Arab populations in the United States. (There are some 175,000 people of Syrian descent living in the United States, according to the Census Bureau, with about 28,000 living in the New York metropolitan area.) |
| “When you lose your house and your business,” Abdulrazak said, “you have to be courageous.” | “When you lose your house and your business,” Abdulrazak said, “you have to be courageous.” |
| The United Nations has set a goal of temporarily or permanently resettling at least 30,000 Syrians by the end of this year. At least 20 countries have pledged a total of at least 18,300 spaces. | The United Nations has set a goal of temporarily or permanently resettling at least 30,000 Syrians by the end of this year. At least 20 countries have pledged a total of at least 18,300 spaces. |
| The United States, which has already provided about $1.3 billion in humanitarian assistance to the Syrian people, has resettled at least 87 Syrians since fiscal year 2012, State Department officials said. The paperwork for a vast majority of those cases, however, had begun before the onset the conflict. | The United States, which has already provided about $1.3 billion in humanitarian assistance to the Syrian people, has resettled at least 87 Syrians since fiscal year 2012, State Department officials said. The paperwork for a vast majority of those cases, however, had begun before the onset the conflict. |
| The Obama administration has not set a target for the total number of Syrians it expects to resettle. But the number will probably be no more than a few hundred this calendar year, in part because the United Nations, for administrative and budgetary reasons, has prioritized the referral of cases to other countries, said Simon Henshaw, principal deputy assistant secretary in the State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration. | The Obama administration has not set a target for the total number of Syrians it expects to resettle. But the number will probably be no more than a few hundred this calendar year, in part because the United Nations, for administrative and budgetary reasons, has prioritized the referral of cases to other countries, said Simon Henshaw, principal deputy assistant secretary in the State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration. |
| In addition, Mr. Henshaw said, refugee admission to the United States typically takes from one to two years, in part because of the extensive background checks. | In addition, Mr. Henshaw said, refugee admission to the United States typically takes from one to two years, in part because of the extensive background checks. |
| Humanitarian and human rights organizations have been pressing for a more robust response by the international community. | Humanitarian and human rights organizations have been pressing for a more robust response by the international community. |
| Human Rights First, an advocacy group based in New York and Washington, has called on the United States to set a firm resettlement goal of at least 15,000 Syrians a year. | Human Rights First, an advocacy group based in New York and Washington, has called on the United States to set a firm resettlement goal of at least 15,000 Syrians a year. |
| “How the United States addresses this refugee crisis will be a critical test for U.S. leadership in the region,” said Eleanor Acer, director of the group’s refugee protection program. “If it moves decisively to lead a meaningful resettlement initiative, the United States has the opportunity to both save the lives of vulnerable refugees and to support the stability of the strategically important countries that are hosting large numbers of Syrian refugees.” | “How the United States addresses this refugee crisis will be a critical test for U.S. leadership in the region,” said Eleanor Acer, director of the group’s refugee protection program. “If it moves decisively to lead a meaningful resettlement initiative, the United States has the opportunity to both save the lives of vulnerable refugees and to support the stability of the strategically important countries that are hosting large numbers of Syrian refugees.” |
| Abdulrazak and his family speak wistfully of their former lives. They had a big house in a middle-class neighborhood, as well as a country villa. | Abdulrazak and his family speak wistfully of their former lives. They had a big house in a middle-class neighborhood, as well as a country villa. |
| Abdulrazak owned a farm and ran a successful business distributing products for a major international home appliance company. The children went to private school. | Abdulrazak owned a farm and ran a successful business distributing products for a major international home appliance company. The children went to private school. |
| Their losses weigh heavily on them, particularly on Abdulrazak. | Their losses weigh heavily on them, particularly on Abdulrazak. |
| “It is difficult,” he said. “I find it hard to describe it because I lost everything. | “It is difficult,” he said. “I find it hard to describe it because I lost everything. |
| “If I could,” he continued, using an Arabic expression, “I would cry blood.” | “If I could,” he continued, using an Arabic expression, “I would cry blood.” |
| But he said that compared with how other Syrians are faring, he considered his family fortunate. Not only had they secured much-coveted refugee status, but everyone was healthy and still together. They remained a family of some means: Relatives have wired them money during their odyssey, helping to keep them afloat. | But he said that compared with how other Syrians are faring, he considered his family fortunate. Not only had they secured much-coveted refugee status, but everyone was healthy and still together. They remained a family of some means: Relatives have wired them money during their odyssey, helping to keep them afloat. |
| In addition, they did not land in a completely strange land: For a decade starting in 1999, Abdulrazak frequently traveled to the United States on business. The family had even lived in Paterson for three of those years; Mustafa, 13, the youngest son, was born in the United States during that time, making him an American citizen. | In addition, they did not land in a completely strange land: For a decade starting in 1999, Abdulrazak frequently traveled to the United States on business. The family had even lived in Paterson for three of those years; Mustafa, 13, the youngest son, was born in the United States during that time, making him an American citizen. |
| They had relatives and friends who had been living for years among Paterson’s large Arab population. And Marim’s brother was resettled as a refugee in Elizabeth, N.J., with his wife and daughter. Both families were resettled by the International Rescue Committee, which is based in New York. | They had relatives and friends who had been living for years among Paterson’s large Arab population. And Marim’s brother was resettled as a refugee in Elizabeth, N.J., with his wife and daughter. Both families were resettled by the International Rescue Committee, which is based in New York. |
| The children, who do not speak English, plan to begin attending public school next week. Abdulrazak said he was looking for a job and would probably end up working in a bakery or a restaurant owned by relatives. | The children, who do not speak English, plan to begin attending public school next week. Abdulrazak said he was looking for a job and would probably end up working in a bakery or a restaurant owned by relatives. |
| They seemed determined to push forward and rebuild their lives. | They seemed determined to push forward and rebuild their lives. |
| “I’m going to be American!” said Mahmoud, 17, the eldest child. | “I’m going to be American!” said Mahmoud, 17, the eldest child. |
| Yet, in a more private moment, the others distracted by another conversation, Abdulrazak turned melancholy. | Yet, in a more private moment, the others distracted by another conversation, Abdulrazak turned melancholy. |
| He had lost all the wealth he had worked so hard to achieve and was starting from scratch, a thought that seemed almost too much for him to bear. | He had lost all the wealth he had worked so hard to achieve and was starting from scratch, a thought that seemed almost too much for him to bear. |
| “It’s over for me now,” he allowed. “I have no future.” Going forward, he said, the children carried the family’s hope. | “It’s over for me now,” he allowed. “I have no future.” Going forward, he said, the children carried the family’s hope. |
Ali Adeeb contributed reporting. | Ali Adeeb contributed reporting. |
| This article has been revised to reflect the following correction: | This article has been revised to reflect the following correction: |
| Correction: January 3, 2014 | Correction: January 3, 2014 |
An earlier version of two picture captions with this article misspelled the given names of two family members. The mother is Marim, not Miriam, and a son is Mustafa, not Mustafah. | An earlier version of two picture captions with this article misspelled the given names of two family members. The mother is Marim, not Miriam, and a son is Mustafa, not Mustafah. |