ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Mustafa Nujeen, a young Kurdish woman who fled the height of the Syrian conflict in a wheelchair with her family, asked the UN Security Council for the first time to consider the rights of people with disabilities in conflict.
"This is not just my story - it is the experience of thousands of Syrians with disabilities who struggle to survive because of the limited basic services still functioning in the country, lack of accessibility, and the constant threat of violence, especially against women and girls," Mustafa told the UNSC.
Mustafa detailed her story of being carried out of war-torn Kobane in 2015 and traveling some 5,600 kilometers to Germany for refuge.
“It took the bombing of a funeral in June 2015, where some of my relatives died, to convince our family that we needed to flee and leave our home and everything we knew behind," the 20-year-old said, later thanking several countries' representations to the UN.
Thank you @GermanyUN @UKUN_NewYork @franceonu @USUN for invitation to the #UNSC And providing me with a chance to brief the council about the struggles of people with disabilities in Syria. pic.twitter.com/wawp03lmhX
— Nujeen Mustafa (@NujeenMustafa) April 25, 2019
A Syrian representative to the UN was on hand to hear testimony from Mustafa, who was born with cerebral palsy.
"In Syria, I didn't have a wheelchair, so I had to be carried out of the country by my siblings, but many people with disabilities cannot depend on their families to help them reach safety. Often, because their family members have been killed or had already left," she explained.
The UN assistant secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and deputy emergency relief coordinator said "many more" civilians have been impacted since the conflict broke out in 2011 "including those injured due to explosive remnants of war."
"Persons with disabilities are often excluded and highly vulnerable. Many lack access to health care and education, and experience difficulties in meeting their basic needs. They also face specific protection and psycho-social challenges, including heightened risk of violence and abuse," added Ursula Mueller.
Determined and optimistic, Nujeen arrived in Germany in 2015. She had already been on the road for 20 days when the news cameras caught up with her on the Hungarian border, where she was among the many refugees trying to get to Germany.
Nujeen and her older sister, Nisreen, trekked thousands of miles through Greece, Macedonia, Austria, Hungary, Croatia and Slovenia before reaching Germany, where she was united with her brother, Bland, who had sought asylum there earlier.
From Croatia she entered Slovenia, where she was arrested and detained, and released only after pressure from human rights activists.
“The UN Security Council has a duty to protect all civilians in armed conflict, including people with disabilities,” said Shantha Rau Barriga, disability rights director at Human Rights Watch in a statement.
“Nujeen Mustafa’s briefing to the Security Council should prompt council members, the UN leadership, and all UN member states to ensure that their humanitarian commitment to ‘Leave no one behind’ is not just rhetoric," it added.
Some 1.5 million people still live in Syria with a disability, according to UNICEF. An estimated 400,000 people have been killed in the protracted eight-plus year conflict.