Bashar
Bashar is married with two young sons aged 7 and 9. Before the war Bashar had supported his family with a decade long career as a web & mobile app designer and developer for humanitarian organisations. He had applied for postgraduate courses overseas and was hoping to improve his career prospects and provide a better future for his family.
On October 7 2023 their lives changed irrevocably.
At the outbreak of the war their neighbourhood was bombed. They had to flee immediately, taking nothing with them.
For the following month they slept in the open at Al-Shifa Medical Complex, without shelter or blankets. When the maternity ward there came under attack, they fled again. They walked over 20 kilometres to the south of Gaza City, where they secured a tent & spent their days searching for food and queueing for the bathroom. During this time they learned that their home had been completely destroyed. All of their family treasures at home were gone, as were their possessions including Bashar’s laptop – which held all the ideas, plans and projects of his professional life.
Despite all of this, Bashar has managed to obtain an offer for a Masters degree in Digital Innovation at University College Dublin, starting in August 2026.
With the full support of his wife and their wider families, Bashar has remained resolute about this goal, even when the family had to move yet again after the Israeli offensive on Gaza City. For Bashar and his wife this is a lifeline; possibly their only chance to rebuild their family’s life and enable their children to flourish.
We are humbled by the resilience of Bashar and his family, and by the determination of Bashar and his wife to build a safe and secure future for their children.