Enaam
A teacher from Iraq, now a refugee in Jordan
Enaam fled Iraq in terror, but now volunteers as an English teacher for Mosaic Middle East.
Olive Tree Centre
After everything that happened, I will never go back to Iraq
Can you imagine fleeing your home in the middle of the night, with babies and very young children, not knowing where you’ll go, whether you’ll be caught by the advancing terrorists or whether it will ever be safe for you to return?
Enaam was one of the first Iraqi refugees we interviewed in Jordan. She told us the harrowing story of how she fled with ten of her family from the onslaught of ISIS. They left their homes in northern Iraq as neighbours and friends were being murdered. Enaam reflects on how her Christian beliefs helped her through:
“We left Iraq and came to Jordan. No one imagined that our life would be like this. I never thought of leaving my town, never. There was no idea of leaving my town before ISIS, but after ISIS life is so terrible there.
“Poor people stayed in their houses - later we heard that ISIS took many of them as prisoners… including the old men. One of my neighbours who was only 45 years old, was found dead on the roof of her house, just covered with a blanket.
“People died and were buried in their gardens. My sister’s neighbours; a father and two sons, are still missing even now and many people disappeared without trace.
The church here in Madaba has helped a lot. God never forgot us.
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“After liberation we hoped that everything would be good and we could go back again to our homes. Many of us hoped to find things just as we left them, but it was terrible. After ISIS I did return to my house, but everything was stolen or destroyed. I just had to leave.
“The church here in Madaba has helped a lot. God never forgot us. We feel that there are good people in this world trying to support us. We feel loved.”
See what happened to Enaam in part two
What happened next...
Enaam has been helping as a volunteer teaching English to her fellow refugees, and we provide her with rent relief and food vouchers as Iraqi refugees are not permitted to work. Enaam shared her powerful testimony in our ’Voices of Iraq’ film in 2018. When we were in Jordan this October, we were keen to find out how she had been getting on.
The first thing we saw was how much happier she appeared!
Enaam, what has been happening for you in the past year?
My older sister tried to get us asylum in The Netherlands but was not successful. Unfortunately as I am a single woman, my requests are not treated as a priority.
Do you think you will ever be able to return home to Qaraqosh in northern Iraq?
No, I will never go back there. After ISIS I did return to my house, but everything was stolen or destroyed. It was terrible; I had to leave. My younger sister and her children are now living in the house. It was restored with help from a charity. ISIS had dug many tunnels underneath the house so it is great that it has been repaired. I did really love my kitchen but after everything that has happened I could never face going back there.
Are you still teaching English in Jordan?
Yes, I am volunteering with the church and the Olive Tree Centre. We are not permitted to have paid work in Jordan.
Despite all you have been going through, the rejection of your asylum application and not having paid employment despite all your qualifications, you seem so full of joy. Why is that?
The church here in Madaba has helped a lot. God never forgot us. We feel that there are good people in this world trying to support us. We feel loved. And, we are so grateful to Mosaic Middle East.
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