Syrian family with disabled son left in limbo in Iraq for over three years despite being granted UK relocation

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A Syrian family who fled Isis and have been accepted for UK resettlement are struggling to help their younger epileptic son as they wait years for relocation.

The family have been ready practically 4 years to be dropped at the UK and are working out of cash to purchase treatment for their seven-year-old, who has been unable to obtain correct hospital care in Iraq.

The UK authorities initially accepted the family’s utility for assist in December 2019 and gave them remaining approval in February 2020 beneath the UK Resettlement Scheme, a relocation programme for weak refugees who’ve been referred by the UN.

But, practically 4 years on, they’re nonetheless ready to be dropped at Britain.

Speaking to The Independent from their residence in Erbil, Iraq, the 40-year-old father, Yawar, described how the agonising wait was affecting his unwell son. “My eldest son needs special drugs because of his epilepsy and it is a struggle to get this medication, but I would do anything I can for my child.

“The medication is not controlling his epileptic bouts completely and for the past two days we haven’t gotten any sleep, neither he nor us. The last time we saw the doctor he increased my son’s dosage to the highest possible and said that if that doesn’t work then there is nothing else for him. His epilepsy is still not controlled.”

His eldest son shouldn’t be capable of talk with different kids and likewise suffers from hydrocephalus, a situation in which fluid accumulates in the mind and causes delayed improvement. The youngest son, who’s four-years-old, has additionally had issues with his improvement and suffers from social isolation, attorneys aiding the family have stated.

Yawar and his spouse fled Syria in 2014 after Isis attacked his hometown metropolis of Kobani in northern Syria. The success of Isis in the area generated a wave of some 400,000 refugees into Turkey. His two sons have been born after the couple fled to Iraq.

Launched in 2020, the UK’s Resettlement Scheme (UKRS) initially aimed to carry round 5,000 weak refugees to Britain in its first 12 months from nations similar to Syria and Sudan.

However, the Home Office scrapped the goal and stated that the numbers could be “kept under review”. Since 2020, solely 2,407 individuals have been relocated and plenty of are pressured to attend years earlier than they’re moved.

According to a report by the UN refugee company, UNHCR, the UK has not offered the company with a quota for UKRS since 2020 and the company has been instructed to limit any new referrals. Any refugee referrals have been restricted to “highly exceptional cases on an ad-hoc basis, amounting to a handful per year”.

The International Organisation for Migration has carried out an evaluation of the family’s wants, and instructed the UK authorities that they would wish a house with out stairs and wheelchair entry. The Home Office has instructed the Syrian family that they didn’t have any appropriate lodging for them to reside in the UK.

In June 2021, NHS England assessed the family’s case and instructed the federal government that the eldest son would additionally want therapy at a regional paediatric neurosciences/surgical procedure centre.

Lawyers supporting the family have instructed the Home Office that Iraq’s state-run hospitals are “deeply inadequate and the only proper support available is at private hospitals, which [our client] cannot afford”. They added that even the personal hospitals in Iraq can not deal with hydrocephalus.

Amid the worsening safety scenario in the Middle East, Iran despatched missiles into Erbil, Iraq this week, close to to the place the family live. On listening to the missile assaults, Yawar was pressured to flee with his family to the road. He stated: “It was very scary in the middle of the night for children to live in this fear”.

He and his family have now been capable of return residence. He added that, whereas he works throughout the day at a market, he struggles to afford his son’s treatment and has bought into debt attempting to pay the family’s payments.

His 33-year-old spouse can be struggling with her psychological well being as she is left to take care of their two sons. He added: “When I first received the news that my application was accepted I was over the moon because I just wanted my children to have a better life, but now with the delays I am gradually feeling frustrated as the process is prolonged. I just want my children to get the treatment they need, for them to go to school, and for them to live a normal life like other children.”

Neither of his kids are capable of go to highschool and his family are shunned by others after they take their disabled son exterior the home, he stated. “When we go out, people look at us in a strange way. It just makes us feel very bad. They look at our children because of how they behave. There is not much acceptance of disability”.

In October 2022, officers on the Home Office instructed the family’s attorneys that they have been “aware of the urgent nature of this case” and that they’d “continue to take steps to source suitable accommodation” for the family.

Analysis by charity Refugee Council discovered that the variety of refugees being resettled by the UK is on the lowest degree for a decade. In the 12 months to September 2023, solely 766 refugees have been resettled to the UK.

Jon Featonby, chief coverage analyst on the charity, stated: “This family’s case is a clear illustration of the urgent need to improve resettlement, which is one of the only existing ‘safe routes’ for refugees to come to the UK but is at its lowest level for over a decade.”

He stated that the Refugee Council have been calling on the federal government to develop secure routes for refugees to come back to the UK however as an alternative there was “no meaningful commitment” to assist.

Mr Featonby added: “The government must make it a priority to reduce dangerous Channel crossings by providing safe passage to our shores.”

Fionnuala Gregan, solicitor at Duncan Lewis, who’ve been supporting the family’s case, stated: “We are extremely concerned for the welfare of this family of four, including two children with disabilities, which include delayed development, epilepsy and cerebral palsy.

“We are concerned that while the family experiences ongoing delay in their being resettled to the UK, they face food scarcity, growing debt and are unable to access adequate healthcare for their children’s disabilities.

“While the family await resettlement to the UK, they bear witness to a deteriorating security situation in Iraq, which has included drone strikes to a US military base located just a few kilometres from their home and recent Iranian missile attacks which targeted residential areas in Erbil, Iraq. Should the delays continue, the family fear the risk of becoming trapped in an increasingly precarious situation in Iraq.”

A Home Office spokesperson stated: “The UK has a proud history of providing protection for those who genuinely need it through our safe and legal routes. Since 2015, we have offered a place to almost half a million men, women and children seeking safety – including those from Hong Kong, Syria, Afghanistan and Ukraine, as well as family members of refugees.

“We are committed to finding accommodation to support ongoing resettlement, but for certain cases where specific housing is required, the speed at which individuals can be resettled in the UK can be impacted.”