When Faisal was eighteen, childhood ended. His mother had already been taken by cancer. Then the Taliban took his father’s life. Overnight, he became an orphan and the sole protector of four younger siblings—just 11, 14, 15, and 16 years old.
His father had been the family’s anchor and provider, working as a translator and local host for U.S. government contractors. But in 2021, when the Taliban swept across Afghanistan, that work marked him for death. On a trip to Kandahar, Taliban fighters opened fire on his car, leaving him critically injured. He spent eight months in a coma before briefly regaining consciousness. When he finally woke, he told Faisal, “There is enough money for one year. Get passports for your siblings. Ask for help to move to Russia or the United States.”
With his father gone, Faisal understood that he and his siblings were also in danger. They tried to live quietly, keeping a low profile. Seeking safety, they eventually moved in with a cousin willing to help. All the while, Faisal carried the weight of a plan he shared with no one else. He didn’t want to frighten his siblings, and he knew that if word spread, it could put all of them in even greater danger.
The first obstacle was passports. Faisal was legally too young to apply for his siblings’ documents, and without passports, there was no chance of escape. He searched for a way around the rules, eventually paying someone to process the applications.
With the documents in hand, he turned to his father’s computer and began reaching out to every U.S. contact he could find, explaining their situation and asking for help. Many contacts replied with sincere regrets but stated they were unable to help. Finally, someone agreed to help. She remembered Faisal as a little boy when she had last been in Afghanistan doing business with his father. A few weeks later, Faisal received a call to make his way to the airport in a neighbouring province, where visas and tickets for him and his siblings to Dubai would be waiting.
Faisal was scared. He had never left Kabul before. Now he had to make his way to a different province, while caring for his younger siblings and avoiding detection. He asked his siblings to trust him and follow his instructions. With no time to question, they followed and left his cousin’s house in secret. Hours later, the five of them reached the airport. They boarded the flight to Dubai, finally putting distance between themselves and immediate danger.
In Dubai, the siblings spent nine difficult months in a crowded, temporary, and uncertain refugee camp. During that time, two parallel efforts to secure their immigration were underway. Thanks to advocacy from their father’s U.S. contacts, Faisal and his siblings were granted interviews with U.S. immigration authorities. The good news was that they would be accepted. The devastating caveat was their minority status meant they would be placed into foster care—separated from Faisal and from one another. At the same time, Faisal received a message from the Aleph Institute, a Jewish not-for-profit organization recognized for its humanitarian advocacy during times of crisis. The Aleph Institute approached JIAS to sponsor the family’s move to Canada and assembled a group of volunteer women—professors, professionals, and community members, all of whom were old enough to be Faisal’s grandmother —to oversee the children’s care. This arrangement meant the siblings would not be placed in foster care and, most importantly, they would remain together.
Both visa approvals for Canada and the U.S. arrived almost simultaneously, but the flight to Canada would be several weeks after the U.S. option. Faisal hesitated. His siblings were weary and impatient after months in the refugee camp. He asked the Aleph Institute the question weighing most heavily on him: Is Canada safe? When the answer came back ‘yes’, Faisal gathered his siblings and asked if they could hold on just a little longer. Waiting meant choosing a country where they would be allowed to stay together. On November 21, 2022, the five siblings boarded a plane bound for Canada. To this day, Faisal says it was the most important and best decision he made in his life.
Now, three years later, Faisal and his siblings live together in their own apartment in Canada. They have built a new life, still side by side, and under the watchful eyes of the volunteer women who divided the responsibility of care: some focused on education, ensuring schools were arranged correctly and progress was monitored; others handled food and clothing; and others oversaw medical and health needs, coordinating appointments and taking them to treatments. Faisal and his siblings also received support from JIAS, their official sponsors, who guided them through the resettlement process. In addition to assigning them a dedicated settlement worker, JIAS provided access to its various services and programs, as well as additional volunteers to provide mentorship and support.
Today, Faisal is both a university student and the legal guardian of his younger siblings. He is studying Business Administration at York University, a career path he has long aspired to, inspired by the work his father once did. Alongside his studies, he carries constant concern for his siblings’ well-being, ensuring that their mental health is supported, they have the necessary resources to succeed in school, and they remain focused on building their lives in Canada. His life is a careful blend of being a young man creating his own future and a parent figure ensuring his siblings can build theirs. One of his siblings has already graduated from high school and is pursuing higher education, with the intention of becoming an architect. The others are still in high school, trying to study well, improve their language skills, and make friends.
Faisal often reflects on their journey and thinks, when God took his parents from him, God gave him something else—good people to watch over him. People who love him and his siblings, care for them, and make them feel part of their own families.
What began as Faisal’s battle against loss, fear, and a desperation to keep his siblings together has become the chance to build a new life where they are safe and together.
