Francesco meets little Alan's father
The meeting, in Erbil, between the Pope and the father of Alan Kurdi, the Syrian child of Kurdish ethnicity who died in a shipwreck on the Turkish coast in September 2015 and whose photo went around the world, shaking the consciences of many. His mother and brother also lost their lives with him Andrea De Angelis - Vatican City
The hug to a father whose son would have been eight years old today. The Pope this Sunday - reports a statement from the Vatican Press Office - wanted to meet during his trip to Iraq, in the "Franso Hariri" Stadium in Erbil, Abdullah Kurdi, the father of little Alan, who was shipwrecked with his brother and mother on the Turkish coasts in September 2015, while he was trying to reach Europe with his family. "The Pope - reads the text - spent a long time with him and with the help of the interpreter he was able to listen to the pain of his father for the loss of his family and to express his and the Lord's profound participation in human suffering . Mr. Abdullah expressed his gratitude to the Pope for the words of closeness to his tragedy and to that of all those migrants who seek understanding, peace and security, leaving their country at the risk of their lives ".
In everyone's head and heart there remains the image of more than five years ago, which portrays a three-year-old boy with a red shirt and blue shorts, lifeless, lying on a beach. Returned by the waves of a sea that has snatched the hope of a better future from him. A dramatic photo, which at the end of summer 2015 shakes consciences on every continent.
History Alan and his family, Syrians of Kurdish ethnicity, were on board a small rubber boat, which capsized shortly after leaving Bodrum, Turkey. At least twenty people on board, intending to reach the Greek island of Kos, which is about 4 kilometers away. It is the night of September 2, 2015. The following morning, the Turkish authorities receive a report of some corpses on the shore. To discover what Alan is about is a bartender, on duty at a hotel near the Turkish beach. It is he, together with another man, who moves the corpses on the beach, to prevent them from being removed from the waves. The next day the child is buried with his mother Rehana and his brother Galib, a little older than him, also victims of the shipwreck. A broken family.
The photography The child is photographed by the Turkish photojournalist Nilüfer Demir. A shot that Alan's aunt, Tima Kurdi, comments as follows: “There is something in that image. God turned the light on it to wake up the world ”. The photo goes around the planet, reaches all homes, opens a glimpse into the pain of so many migrants. In the following months, Alan's lifeless body, lying on the beach, is represented by artists from every continent to keep the memory alive. The words of Francesco A few days later, at the Marian Angelus prayer on Sunday 6 September 2015, the Pope makes a heartfelt appeal for the reception of refugees:
Faced with the tragedy of tens of thousands of refugees fleeing death from war and hunger, and on the way to a hope of life, the Gospel calls us, asks us to be "next", to the smallest and most abandoned . To give them concrete hope. Not just saying: "Courage, patience ...". Christian hope is combative, with the tenacity of one who goes towards a sure goal. Therefore, near the Jubilee of Mercy, I appeal to parishes, religious communities, monasteries and shrines throughout Europe to express the concreteness of the Gospel and welcome a family of refugees. A concrete gesture in preparation for the Holy Year of Mercy. Each parish, each religious community, each monastery, each sanctuary in Europe hosts a family, starting with my diocese of Rome.
The gift to FAO READ ALSO Pope donates Alan statue, symbol of tragedy of migrations, to FAO 16/10/2017 Pope donates Alan statue, symbol of tragedy of migrations, to FAO On October 16, 2017, at the beginning of his visit to FAO in Rome, Pope Francis pauses briefly in the atrium of the building where a marble sculpture depicting little Alan is placed. The statue, a gift from the Holy Father to FAO, is a work in white Carrara marble by the Trentino artist Luigi Prevedel, which depicts the lifeless Syrian child on the beach, next to an angel shaken by an excruciating cry. ~ PER VATICAN NEWS ITALY (translated to english 03/07/2021)