15 year old ISIS victim survivor
Sameer in front of his Aussie house in regional QLD.
Sameer is a survivor. He is young but he has suffered much. He experienced an unbelievable amount of trauma in his young life in Iraq, which left him physically disabled.
Sameer is a victim of an attempt at genocide, the destruction of a minority people group called Yezidis, by militant ISIS. Many of his family and community are dead. Sameer bears the scars of hatred, persecution dealt out to his people over the decades, wounding imposed upon them for their beliefs.
Life used to be normal for Sameer. He lived with his family in a small town in Iraq. One day, when Sameer was a young boy, something horrific happened, something that changed his life forever. Sameer and his father got in their family car - such a simple, daily act - and a bomb that had been planted by terrorists was set off. Sameer survived the explosions by some miracle. His right leg did not. Severe burns destroyed the skin – deformity resulted.
Sameer needed ongoing medical attention because his skin was so severely damaged that as he grew, his leg began to twist, becoming misshapen and leaving him unable to walk properly.
Young Sameer at an IDP camp in Iraq . Photo from Pre-emptive Love Coalition.
In 2014, ISIS soldiers invaded Sameer's village and many Yezidi people ran to the mountains to escape the violent attacks. Sameer, along with his elderly grandmother, couldn’t physically run to safety and so tried to hide in their home instead. They were both captured; taken captive by ISIS soldiers. Sameer was forced to live with ISIS – militant soldiers took the place of his mother and father.
Sameer was held hostage to ISIS for months. He suffered brutality by men who hated him simply because he was Yezidi. Sameer found it especially torturous to see his grandmother harmed. One time when ISIS men used the butts of their guns to hit and taunt grandma, Sameer courageously intervened and demanded them to stop. So they turned on him instead, and his fragile leg was left beaten and bloodied.
One day the army came and they were freed from ISIS. Sameer was reunited with his parents and siblings in an Internally Displaced People (IDP) camp. Humanitarian organisations in Iraq learned of Sameer's story and the injuries he endured. They began supporting his family and taking care of his medical needs, but Sameer was not able to get the standard of medical care his leg required.
Young Sameer with his beloved grandmother in Iraq. Photo by Matt Willingham from Pre-emptive Love Coalition.
In 2017, Sameer and his family were welcomed into Australia on Humanitarian VISAs. They now live in a Queensland town and thanks to the Australian medical system, Sameer has had the complicated surgeries he needed to get back on two feet again.
Sameer’s leg after surgery in Australia.
Sameer’s rehabilitation journey has progressed from using a wheelchair, to using crutches to hop around while he had a metal frame with pins, to now walking confidently on two legs completely unassisted!
Sameer is literally a walking miracle. Although he has more surgeries to go, his leg is getting stronger every day and he’s indeed very thankful.
Rachael Carter, manager of YouBelong, has assisted Sameer with transport to the city for some of his medical appointments. Rachael says ‘Witnessing the rehabilitation journey for Sameer has been amazing to watch. He’s a one-of-a-kind young man and I’m very proud of his determination and positive attitude’.
Sameer, aged 14, on crutches and a rehabilitation plan in Australia.
We asked Sameer what he likes about Aussie life:
“I love the rules that Australia has!
I really like my new school. I want to live with my family safely in Australia and I hope I will never see ISIS again."
Sameer is not just a survivor. He's a hopeful dreamer. He has a courageous plan for his future: he wants to become a surgeon so he can help other people who are suffering due to disabilities and traumatic experiences.
Sameer’s life was irrevocably changed by the genocidal attacks of ISIS. The trauma he experienced, along with his injuries, were crippling. But Sameer has taken the trauma and grief and used them as building blocks for a fresh, hope-filled future, a re-imagined ending to the torture he endured. His courage and kindness are breathtaking and we look forward to cheering him on, long into the future.
For World Refugee Week 2021 would you considering partnering with us, or sponsoring a rider in our Bike to Belong campaign, so we can continue welcoming refugees like Sameer with open arms?
Words: Tracey Heers
Sameer with friends Ashley Hodges and Rachael Carter from the You Belong team.
