Human interest stories

Jafar’s* face lights up as he caresses the strings on his new violin. “It is beautiful, thank you so much! I promise to make you proud.” As he strums, a gentle tune fills the room. “I will play a love song from my home country – it is becoming that it be the first...

Noor left Pakistan when he was 26 years old and made it to Serbia in the beginning of 2017. Almost two years later on, he is a lead singer in two bands, gaining popularity across the country. “Music is a universal language. It is my passion. You have the opportunity...

Shafiq decided to flee Afghanistan when a man showed up at his workshop and threatened to kill them all if the family did not give him their daughter, who was only thirteen, to repay a family debt. The family travelled to Turkey then crossed the sea to Greece before...

Before arriving in Belgrade, Serbia, in 2017, Zaman had never step foot in a school. “My family lived in a rural area,” says Zaman. “I grew up working in the field and when the conflict intensified, my parents insisted that I, at least, should try make it out.” Having...

On a recent cold and misty morning, Ranko Rajković shows visitors around the converted barn where he lives in central Serbia and tells them that he just wants to tear it down and build a decent home with a separate bedroom for him and his wife. “My [wife] Željka...