DistantNews
Support us
🇨🇺 Cuba /Disasters & Emergencies

Refugee's harrowing journey highlights global displacement crisis

From Granma · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

In-depth Sources not specified Context piece
  • Mahamat Daoud, a refugee from Darfur, Sudan, recounts his childhood experiences of displacement due to war and the subsequent hardships faced in refugee camps.
  • His journey involved perilous travel through deserts and unknown countries, leading to detention in Libya due to his race and witnessing severe violence.
  • The article highlights the global scale of forced displacement, with UNHCR reporting 117.8 million forcibly displaced people worldwide by the end of 2025, though recent figures show a slight decrease.

Mahamat Daoud's childhood was marked by the sounds of bombs and the terror in the eyes of fellow refugees as he fled his native Darfur, Sudan. At just six years old, he experienced his first displacement, eventually finding refuge with his family in eastern Chad's camps. Life there was a daily struggle for basic necessities like water, food, and medicine.

I was born in Darfur, Sudan, a region marked by years of war.

— Mahamat DaoudRecounting his origins and the conflict that led to his displacement.

His journey continued across deserts and unfamiliar lands, fraught with the constant risk of death. In Libya, what he hoped would be salvation turned into a harsh reality of arbitrary detention based on his skin color, accompanied by unforgettable violence and abuse. He was forced to move again, traveling through Algeria and then Morocco, emphasizing that these were not leisurely trips but desperate flights from conflict zones where civilian populations bear an atrocious cost.

The article underscores the precarious existence of those forced to flee, where the fight for survival, uncertainty about the next sunrise, and instability define their future. Mahamat lost a friend to violence on the border between Nador and Melilla before managing to escape by small boat. "For too many refugees, displacement begins as a lifeline but ends up lasting a lifetime," stated a UNHCR official.

Life there was not easy: every day we fought for water, food, and medicine.

— Mahamat DaoudDescribing the harsh conditions in the refugee camps in Chad.

Globally, the UNHCR's annual report indicates that by the end of 2025, an estimated 117.8 million people were forcibly displaced. While the report notes a decrease in forced displacement for the first time in a decade, the numbers remain unacceptably high. Over 70% of refugees and those needing international protection in 2025 originated from Afghanistan, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, and Ukraine. Escalating conflict in the Middle East also led to approximately one million internally displaced people in Lebanon by mid-May and 3.2 million temporarily displaced in Iran by late March.

I was detained without reason, simply for the color of my skin, and I witnessed violence and abuses that I will never forget.

— Mahamat DaoudRecounting his experience of detention and abuse in Libya.

Mahamat now resides in Italy, aware that his story is common among many, yet his ending is not. He firmly believes, "Every life matters and every person deserves to be saved." His testimony serves as a powerful reminder of the human cost of conflict and displacement.

For too many refugees, displacement begins as a lifeline but ends up lasting a lifetime.

— Barham SalihUN High Commissioner for Refugees, commenting on the prolonged nature of displacement.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Granma in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog