He is just weeks old – but Ibrahim Al Hussein is a symbol of hope for the people of Syria.
Cradled in his mother Fadila’s arms with his proud dad Khalid and brother Shadea beside him, the youngster is a world away from the horrors of his parents’ homeland.
Khalid and Fadila Al Hussein and their two-year-old son Shadea were among the 30 refugees taken in by Aberdeen City Council earlier this year.
And they have now marked a new milestone in their journey from their war-torn homeland with the birth of another son, Ibrahim, who is thought to be the first child of Syrian refugees born in the north-east of Scotland.
The couple said they wanted to return to Syria one day, but can see no quick way to end the five-year conflict.
Speaking through an Arabic interpreter, they spoke exclusively to the Press and Journal about their journey over the past three years from the Syrian capital, to an Iraqi refugee camp and finally on to a new life in the Granite City.
Former TV repair man Mr Al Hussein, 27, met his 25-year-old wife, who is from Aleppo, through family before they started a life in his home city Damascus.
They now live in the centre of Aberdeen with their young sons.
Mr Al Hussein said: “We had to leave Syria. Everything was getting destroyed, there is no way to make money or have a life, no jobs were available.
“All our families have now left. I have a sister in Lebanon in a camp and a brother who was killed in the war.
“But praise be to God we had applied to the UNHCR (Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) in the camp and our application was accepted and we are now safe.
“I can’t thank the council enough. We really like Aberdeen, it’s a great city with very friendly people.”
He added with a grin: “The only thing is that my wife doesn’t like the weather that much.
“It’s too early to think about whether I want to carry on my job here, my main priority is learning English now which is very difficult.”
The war drove the couple to flee Damascus for a refugee camp outside Erbil in Iraq where they spent the next 27 months.
Mrs Al-Hussein said: “There was a lot of fraud in the camp, if you had money you could skip the process by bribing the Iraqis so I think the UN need to police it better.
“We spent two years and three months living in a tent with just mud on the ground in the middle of nowhere.
“There were always problems with the water and there was only about two hours of electricity a day.
“Shadea was born there.”
Mr Al Hussein added: “There were often fires set among the tents and you only had about seven seconds to get out before you would burn.
“There were babies and families who would die. It was awful.”
The couple said that the future for the country looked bleak and they saw no easy answers.
Mr Al Hussein said: “No one knows what the future holds and it is a very complicated situation.
“But as long as (Syrian president) Assad stays there can’t be peace.
“When that happens and the country is safe again we will be the first to go back.”
Lower Deeside councillor Tauqeer Malik met the family through Aberdeen Mosque and Islamic Centre.
He said: “I met the family through the mosque and they told me that they are very happy in the city and grateful to the council.
“It’s good to know that we have helped.”
Council leader Jenny Laing added: “The people coming here from Syria have been through a very traumatic time so it’s important that we are there to offer any services they require.
“We are delighted as a council to welcome the new addition to the family and wish them a wonderful life in Aberdeen.”
The local authority has pledged to take up to 100 refugees.
