EBÎR MUHAMED

 Dêrik (Al-Malikiyah)- The attacks of the Turkish state and Turkish-backed factions on  Serêkaniyê (Ras al-Ayn) and Girê Spî (Tell Abyad) in 2019 displaced thousands to different cities. Some families settled in the Newroz Camp, located in the city of Dêrik, northeastern Syria. In 2022, the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) opened a culture and art center for the displaced children living in the camp. The center offers singing, folklore, chess, football and theatre courses to about 90 Kurdish and Arab children aged between eight and 15 with six displaced teachers. At the center, all staff are volunteers and the residents of the camp receive no support from any aid organizations.

She wants to participate in chess tournaments

Fereh Hiso (14), a displaced girl from Serêkanîyê, has been living in the camp with her family for about three years. She has learned folklore dances, how to play chess and paint at the center. “I have learned how to play chess at the center. I was afraid at first because I thought that I would not learn it,” she told NuJINHA. “But I learned how to play chess and now I am successful. I want to participate in chess tournaments.”

‘I want to be a teacher’

Fatma El-Etiye (12), another displaced girl from Serêkanîyê, currently performs in a theatre play about violence against women “because I want to raise awareness about violence against women in society. I have attended the theatre course at the center for about three years.” Fatma El-Etiye wants to be a teacher when she grows up because “I want to teach children. We want humanitarian organizations to support us and provide the necessary assistance.”