Relatives of drowned Syrian boy arrive in Canada as refugees

When Alan Kurdi’s little body washed up on a beach in Turkey, forcing the world to understand the ache of Syria’s refugees, the 2-year-old boy was just one member of a family on the run, scattered by almost 5 years of time of time of upheaval.

CBC Television broadcast the arrival of Mohammad Kurdi, his wife and five children in Vancouver, where they had an emotional reunion with his sister Tima Kurdi.

A tearful Tima Kurdi told media she was thankful to the global community, and everyone in Canada who had helped her family make the hard journey.

Their 3-year-old nephew, Alan Kurdi, drowned along with his five-year-old brother and mother while trying to cross the waters between Turkey and Greece in September.

“The most important part – thank you to Canadian people and Justin Trudeau for opening the door and show the world how everyone should welcome and save lives.”

“Thank you to the Canadian people”, she told a crowd of reporters gathered around the family.

Tima Kurdi said the entire family of seven will join her family of three in their Vancouver home.

Alan’s father, Abdullah Kurdi, made a decision to attempt the treacherous trip after his brother Mohammed’s original refugee application was rejected by the Canadian government because it did not have the necessary documentation.

Mr Trudeau’s Liberal government has pledged to resettle 25,000 Syrian refugees by the end of February.

After the rejection, her other brother, Abdullah, attempted the unsafe crossing from Turkey to Greece in an overcrowded boat with his family.

Mohammad Kurdi will be joining his sister at her Port Coquitlam hair salon on Coast Meridian Road, where he’ll work as a barber.

Tima Kurdi is now privately sponsoring her family as refugees in Canada and they are looking forward to a fresh start. But Tima’s older brother, Mohammad, is scheduled to arrive in Vancouver with his wife and five kids Monday morning.

She had hoped to sponsor Alan and his family next.

The family said that while they are happy to be in Canada and grateful for the country’s generosity, they are still grieving for their dead relatives and all the Syrian refugees who were not able to escape.

She also thanked MLA Selina Robinson and Coquitlam Mayor Richard Stewart for their support.

Mohamed Kurdi said: “I’m happy”.

“There’s always a light at the end of the tunnel… keep walking until you find that light”.

Despite the pain it causes every time she’s confronted with her relatives’ deaths, Kurdi says she doesn’t want her nephew’s tragedy to be forgotten.