(2/2) We weren’t allowed to watch the news in Iraq, so we didn't know the war was coming. But my uncle who lived in New Zealand knew and so when he called, he would say, ‘You know, it might be best if you try to go to Syria. It might be a better future.’ He had to just hint, because at that time, phone calls were always listened to.
So finally, in 2003, when I was 13, we packed up, hired a driver, and drove to Syria, leaving behind all our things. On . . .