Jassim, who is over 100 years old, and his family fled Syria in 2013 after three of his children were killed by bombing in their village. Jassim and the rest of the family fled to Lebanon where life was extremely difficult. They lived in a tent the whole time and struggled to make rent on the land they were staying. 

After the Assad government fell late last year, the family decided it was time to return home. Jassim described his return as “bittersweet”—he was happy to return to his home country, however they arrived back to their city to find their home was destroyed. 

“I felt like I was starting from zero.”

Jassim and his family—children, grandchildren and one great-grandchild—are now living in the rubble of their former home, using the UNHCR tent they lived in in Lebanon to keep a roof over their heads.

Many Syrians who have recently returned after years away as refugees are returning to rubble where their homes used to be. 

With no shelter and no documentation to register their children in school, or benefit from local services, UNHCR are connecting them with the services they need to rebuild their lives. 

Help Syrian refugee returnees rebuild with dignity.

We at UNHCR are trying as much as we can help families like Jassim’s—to repair shelters, help people find paid work and restore their documentation so that houses can be built, children can go to school and families can access healthcare. 

But we cannot continue this work without you—severe funding cuts are threatening our work and most importantly our ability to help families like Jassims’s. 

Please, donate now to help families rebuild. 

Thank you for standing with the people of Syria.