The endless tragedy of Syria seen through the eyes of those who experienced it. Video

Jafar: I still remember the bombs and the  entire month we spend eating only rice. Once my mother went out with my little brother to get us some food and a bomb fell close to them. My mum eyes were hit by many shrapnel and my brother had some hard time. I miss everything of my country. I used to go to school and see all my friends, speaking in my native language: this is something I really miss.

Jafar and Majid, two young Syrians and the tail of the same war: the bombs, snipers, friends no longer there, the collapsed school, the flight towards horizons of peace.

Jafar: They helped us to come to Italy. My dad never came back from war. The situation in the refugee camp was much better: I had many friends there and was attending school with my brothers.

Jafar was a 15 years hold boy living in Damasco, when war break into his life ripping out his father and friends, but not his hopes and dreams. Today he is hosted by Sant’Egidio in Rome (Italy). He is now a full member of the Youth for Peace: the international movement striving in every corner of the world to bring a smile to the last one. Son of the war he now teaches the meaning of peace. Coming from the periphery of the world, he now offers care and tenderness to those in the peripheries of Rome.

Jafar: I met the Youth for Peace and started visiting the elderly with them. People are helping us, and we need to help as well.

Majid: Life in a camp is so hard. You need to get out from 8am to 3pm. Food is not very good. There is always very little to eat. To get some tea you need to wait in a long queue.

Majid is 17 years hold. He escaped Syria in 2015. His journey is a dramatic odyssey among countries in war and refugee camps. Nevertheless, his odyssey didn’t brought him back to his country, but in Italy where he dreams a future as a rapper entrusting his message of peace to music.

Majid: the pen is my weapon. I can write and send out a message: it is a powerful force. Like living together: youth and elderly, black and white people - it’s something beautiful.