The body of Syrian teenager who was stabbed to death in the UK will be returned home after a campaign raised £15,000 for his family.
The mother of 16-year-old Ahmad Mamdouh Al Ibrahim had requested that his body be laid to rest in Syria, after he was killed on April 3 in Huddersfield, northern England.
He had moved to the town in Yorkshire to live with his uncle only two weeks before his death, after living at an immigration centre in Wales.
Ahmad was a “kind and gentle” teenager who had dreams of becoming a doctor, his family has said. He had fled his homeland after being injured by shrapnel during the bombing of Homs.
A fundraising page on the JustGiving website was started by Maneer Siddique, who owns a tailoring business in Huddersfield. He originally asked for £13,000 but the amount raised has passed £15,500.
“Ahmad didn’t get the chance to experience the safety and future he came here hoping for. Helping grant this final wish of his mother is the least we can do,” said Mr Siddique
In his appeal for donations, he said: “Ahmad’s mother has requested that her son be laid to rest in Syria, close to his family, his home, and his roots.”
The appeal was started “with the permission of Ahmad’s uncle, to help cover the costs of repatriating his body to Syria and ensuring he receives a dignified burial surrounded by loved ones”.
Funeral prayers for Ahmad were held at Huddersfield’s Omar mosque last Friday, and were attended by around 500 people. His body will be flown from Heathrow to Damascus next Tuesday evening, accompanied by two relatives, and then taken to Homs for burial.
Alfie Franco, 20, appeared at Leeds Crown Court last week charged with Ahmad’s murder. He was remanded in custody with a trial set for October 2. Officer are working with Ahmad’s family and are investigating the attack, said West Yorkshire Police.
In a statement issued through the force, his family said: “Ahmad fled war-torn Homs, Syria, after being injured in a bombing He chose to come to the UK because he believed in the values of human rights, safety and dignity.
The family added that Ahmad had begun to settle into his new life in the UK with his uncle and was “adjusting to a new language, a new home and a future he was excited to build”.
“Losing him has left an unimaginable emptiness in our hearts,” the statement said. “We never thought that the place he saw as a safe haven would be where his life would end. Our only wish now is to lay him to rest in his homeland, Syria. Thank you for helping us honour his memory.”
