Blogs
September 19, 2025 • 3 min read
After surviving the 14-year war in Syria, Mosab returned home to Saraqeb determined to help rebuild his community. Through GOAL, he has supported more than 1.4 million people with emergency aid, turning personal loss into a lifeline for others. On this International Day of Peace, we reflect on Mosab’s powerful story — a journey from conflict and displacement to compassion and hope. Peace is not passive. It is built through action, solidarity, and our commitment to one another. GOAL stands with the people of Syria, and all communities recovering from conflict, as they take their first steps toward peace.
My name is Mosab Hajismael, and I am from Saraqeb, a large town in the eastern part of Idleb, Syria. I am a graduate of Aleppo University with a degree in English. During my military service – compulsory for all male citizens in Syria between the ages of 18 and 42 – I worked as a liaison officer with the Senior Syrian Arab Delegate Office. My primary responsibility was for coordinating with the UN Forces stationed in the Golan Heights – a rocky plateau straddling the borders of south-western Syria and Israel.
After completing my service, I worked as an English teacher until 2015. That year, the civil war that had begun in 2011—known as the Arab Spring—reached my hometown. Our house was bombed, and one of my children was injured. As the bombardment became a daily reality, my family and I made the painful decision to leave everything behind and seek safety in Türkiye to start a new life.
Having witnessed firsthand the devastation the war had caused in my hometown, I was determined to help other people across Syria. This led me to want to become a humanitarian, and since 2018, I have been working with GOAL’s Türkiye office, managing the Emergency Department.
Throughout my time with GOAL, and through over 100 crisis response programmes, my team has reached approximately 1.4 million people (around 282,000 households) and distributed over 485,000 emergency kits, including food, hygiene supplies, and tents. These interventions have been crucial in providing support to individuals affected by conflict, displacement, and extreme weather-related disasters, including floods, snowstorms, earthquakes, wildfires, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Including my own family.
Mosab Hajismael and the Multi-Purpose-Cash-Assistance (MPCA) team at the GOAL Syria distribution point in Mukavema Camp- Azaz, Aleppo
A surge in displacement in late 2019 caused by the intensifying civil war displaced my family across different areas in Syria – Idleb, Azaz, Jarablus, Sarmada, and Bennish. This placed a significant personal and professional burden on me: responding to the urgent needs of displaced communities while ensuring the safety and well-being of my own family.
The need for GOAL’s services increased significantly after the earthquake that struck Türkiye and Syria on February 6, 2023. In total, we reached more than 39,000 households (over 190,000 individuals). My family was among those deeply affected by this disaster, forcing us to move several times in search of safety. Yet again, I battled with balancing personal loss, all while working tirelessly to address the enormous humanitarian needs in northwest Syria.
Mosab Hajismael at GOAL Syria distribution point -Idlib.
With the liberation of Syria on December 8, 2024, everything changed, and a glimmer of hope finally emerged. After nearly a decade of living in displacement, I returned from Türkiye with my family to rebuild our lives. We have moved back to our hometown of Saraqeb, and I continue in my work with GOAL. Many members of my extended family have also started to return.
Yet, even with this long-awaited end to the conflict, the needs remain immense. Fourteen years of war have left our homes shattered and our communities struggling to meet even their most basic needs. As both a Syrian and a proud GOALie, I urge the international community not to look away from Syria, but to stand with us as we begin the long journey of recovery and rebuilding.
