Aunt of Syrian toddler who died on beach excited to greet relatives

Her other brother, Mohammad Kurdi, is scheduled to arrive into Vancouver with his wife and five kids on Monday.

The image of three-year-old Alan Kurdi’s lifeless body on a Turkish beach shocked the world in early September.

On everyone’s mind, though, were the absent – Tima and Mohammad’s brother, Abdullah, who survived an ill-fated voyage across the Mediterranean, and his wife and their two sons, who did not.

It was a joyful reunion, coming about nine months after Kurdi began the process of sponsoring Mohammad Kurdi, his wife and their five children, refugees fleeing the ongoing conflict in Syria. “I am happy, very happy”, Mohammad was quoted telling reporters at the city’s main airport by the ABC.

The refugee policy became a political issue some months back, when the Canadian government earlier was accused of refusing asylum to some members of the family who drowned.

While she praises Canada for its efforts – and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in particular – Kurdi worries that already the world is beginning to forget the thousands of people still struggling to escape Syria.

Alan’s father, Abdullah, is residing in northern Iraq and has declined both his sister’s request and the federal government’s invitation for him to come to Canada.

One of the older boys said he was thankful not only to the Canadian people and Canadian government, but also to government of Turkey, to which the family had first fled.

She told BBC Radio 5 Live on Sunday that she was unable to look at the photo of the toddler, which became a symbol for the refugee crisis.

The Liberals have committed to taking in 25,000 refugees by the end of February, although they admit they will likely fall short of their revised target to settle 10,000 by the end of the year.

Haveen Kurdi, 16, says she is excited to be in Canada.

The family will stay in the Coquitlam home where Tima Kurdi lives with her husband and children.

Alan Kurdi drowned when a boat attempting the perilous crossing from Turkey to Greece, capsized. “But you’re always here”, she said, placing her hand over her heart.

After Alan’s death, Tima Kurdi said Canada had rejected the family’s request for refugee status, but later acknowledged it had never been submitted.

Tima Kurdi wiped away tears as she greeted her relatives at the airport’s arrival gates. “That hurts me even more”, she says. However, according to government data, more than 2,000 refugees have arrived in Canada since November 4.