After Syria: Healing Through Football
Mahmoud, Jordan
When the Syrian war broke out in 2011 it caused an exodus of 5.5 million refugees to neighbouring countries. These included Jordan, a country that now hosts 650,000 Syrians, as well as Iraqi, Yemeni, Sudanese and Somali refugees. Jordan has the second highest refugee population per capita in the world. About 85 per cent of refugees in Jordan are urban-based, with the remainder in camps, the largest of which is Zaatari, close to the Syrian border. Since 2012, Zaatari has evolved from a collection of tents to an urban settlement of 76,000 people. Residents are supported by UNHCR, as well as NGOs and the Jordanian government. About 20 per cent are under 5. Football plays a key role, with UNHCR running initiatives for children.
Mahmoud, 19, is a football coach at the Zaatari Olympic Committee. Every day he trains children in the camp and has participated in tournaments inside and outside the camp. In 2017, he was chosen as part of an initiative to train at the Aspire Academy in Qatar.
Can you tell us your personal story?
I started to love sports when I was a child in Daraa in Syria, and now a day of sports helps me to heal from the depression and sadness in the camp. I played football in my country Syria with my school team but left because of the war. I enjoy playing football and it gives me hope. My ambition is to play with a European football team.
What did you try to show with the photos? Was there any wider meaning with the photos?
Children and people inside the camp play football on the playground and streets, and a football field on the edge of the camp. I showed how people love sports, and how they play it in the streets, but also how they suffer because they don’t have equipment and training shoes. Football is really important and the community cares about it.
Sport is my life. I can't live without it. I can't even spend one day without doing sports or playing football. It's one of my stress release methods.
Do you play football now with any Jordanian people?
Jordanian people are very good to us. I have played with Al-Hussein SC (Irbid) in the Jordanian first division and Mansheyat Bani Hasan in the second division.
I am lucky to get the chance to play with Jordanian teams. This experience allows me to see the community outside of the refugee camp. Participating in high-level football matches make me proud of myself. I hope that in the future I will be a famous football player and have a film made about my story to inspire others.
