Help a bereaved and broken family

Maryam Noorzad is organizing this fundraiser.

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Jalil and his wife Maryam's lives were shuttered on May 14, 2018. In that harrowing night a family of 9 embarked on a desperate journey by boat between the shores of Turkey and Greece.

Jalil worked for the U.S. armed forces in Herat, Afghanistan. His brother Jamil worked for the US and German special forces for almost 4 years. The family was forced to contemplate fleeing the country due to threats made on their lives for their affiliation with the US and German armies. Some recent Taliban attacks on Afghans of similar background created an urgency in their plans to leave the country.

Thus, Jalil and his wife, Maryam, sold all their meager belonging, borrowed the rest of the money they needed, and made arrangements for themselves and their three children, as well as Jalil’s mother, his 22 year old brother Jamil and his two cousins, Ferdos (19) and Yousof (14) to make the journey.
Jalil's mother Kadija (54) had his nephews Ferdos and Yousof under her care after the death of their mother few years ago. Their dad remarried and his new wife was not willing to mother his children.

After the harrowing overland portion of their journey, they finally made it to Turkey where they were stranded for sometime. On that fateful night despite the couple's concerns, the family boarded a rickety, overloaded boat. They put to sea soon after it was dark. They had been underway only about two hours when disaster struck. Without warning, a huge wave hit them and the boat sank, pitching all aboard into the black waters. There were no life jackets.

All was chaos. Not knowing who had been able to grab something with which to remain afloat, parents were screaming for their children. Children were screaming for their parents.
Jalil's last memory of the sinking boat will haunt him for the rest of his life. He remembers having his daughter in his arms and holding his oldest son's hand. He breaks down every time he tells the story of how his son's hand slipped from his. His wife says he wakes up screaming some nights from sleep remembering his son's last moments.

Maryam now wonders if her little son, Musawar, not yet five years of age realized how desperately she was trying to find him before he sank out of sight. Or, if Jalil’s mother tried to save her grandson, Abdul Jalal, only seven years of age, before they, too disappeared into the depths.

By the time the Turkish fishing boat finally rescued them, only five of Jalil’s original family of nine was afloat. The bodies of Jalil’s two children, Abdul Jalal and Musawar as well as his mother and his cousin, Ferdos, were later recovered and taken to a morgue in Turkey. The survivors, including his 6 year old daughter were arrested by the Turkish authorities and spent four days in jail while their dead remained unattended in the morgue.
The couple had lost it all. They had lost what they had set out to protect.

Yusof (14)who spend almost a month in the hospital after the accident is now back with Jalil’s family. His only protectors his aunt and older brother both gone.

They are now penniless and in a desperate condition where they must live with their overwhelming grief. And, they have no place to go and almost no way to survive.
Maryam Cries everyday. Little Marwa asks for grandma and her brothers constantly and according to her parents is withdrawing inward everyday.

In Turkey they have permission to stay on temporary basis without the freedom to leave the city they reside in. They are not allowed to work or travel in Turkey. They certainly cannot return to Afghanistan.

This family need us to help them get back on their feet. They need money to survive until they can figure out what country can take them to place new roots. They took a risk out of desperation and have paid the ultimate price. No parent should watch their children drown.

Please help us relieve them of their desperate situation. Let’s come together to support and assist them through this difficult time. Every euro counts. They will be receiving all of the funds from this campaign. All the funds will be transferred via Western Union or personally delivered to the family.

Note: Jalil is family of my uncle's in-laws and I know them personally very well.