The extended family of a Syrian toddler whose body washed up on a Turkish beach in September, sparking international outrage over the plight of refugees fleeing the war in Syria, will arrive in Canada by the end of the year, says the boy’s Canadian aunt.
Tima Kurdi, who lives in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia, on Canada’s Pacific coast, told the Canadian Press her brother Mohammad Kurdi, along with his wife and five children, are scheduled to arrive in British Columbia the morning of Dec. 28.
“Of course he was very happy,” she told the Canadian Press, after speaking with her brother about the upcoming journey.
“He was crying on the phone, he said ‘I cannot even imagine that moment,'” she added.
Mohammad is the uncle of Alan Kurdi, the three-year-old boy who died alongside his brother Galib, 5, and their mother, Rehana, when their boat capsized between Turkey and the Greek island of Kos, in the early hours of Sept 2, 2015. The boy’s father, Abdullah Kurdi, survived.
Abdullah has chosen not to come to Canada to be with his sister and brother, staying instead in Syrian Kurdistan.
“He doesn’t want to leave,” said Tima. “He’s still hurt. He said ‘I tried my best to save my family, and now they’re gone and my life doesn’t mean anything to me, so I’m not going anywhere.'”
Tima’s initial application to bring in Mohammad and his family to Canada was rejected by Citizenship and Immigration Canada as incomplete.
That rejection – after three frustrating months trying to acquire all the necessary documents – discouraged Tima from filing an application to bring Alan’s father Abdullah, prompting him instead to risk a perilous sea voyage to try to reach safety in Europe.
Tima has opened a hair salon in Port Coquitlam, B.C., where she says Mohammad will join her as a barber.
With files from the Canadian Press
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