Published on 6/21/2026
In an inspiring humanitarian journey aimed at highlighting the severe education crisis afflicting the country, the story began following a visit by Sami (who has lived in Norway since 2012) to Syria after the fall of the Assad regime; He was shocked by the phenomenon of child labor spreading in the streets and industrial workshops.
This harsh scene prompted him to dig deeper, only to encounter a terrifying digital reality: that more than 2.5 million Syrian children are deprived of basic education as a result of the complete or partial destruction of thousands of schools and the lack of educational infrastructure.
In the face of this reality, Sami did not stand idly by. Rather, he decided to launch his unique initiative with two goals in mind: raising international and local awareness of the Syrian education crisis, and collecting donations to build a new school that would embrace these children.
Sami set out on his bike on a long path that included Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Czechia, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria, Romania, and Turkey, all the way to the Syrian interior.
The trip was not just a bike ride; Rather, it turned into a mobile awareness campaign, during which Sami participated in various activities within mosques, churches, schools and universities in the countries he passed through, distributing leaflets introducing the issue.
Despite the hardship of the road, Sami found tremendous moral support represented by the warm reception and solidarity of the Syrian communities of all walks of life, who opened their homes to him and provided him with support throughout his journey.
As for the financial level, Sami indicated that the campaign has so far managed to collect between 13% and 15% of the amount required to build the school, stressing that the door for donations will remain open inside and outside Syria until the goal is achieved.
At the end of his trip, Sami sent a warning message to the international and local community, saying: “We face a real danger of losing an entire generation if we do not move quickly to secure their right to education. After 10 or 15 years, we will not have the right to blame these children if we leave them out of school today.”
Despite the scale of the challenges, Sami is filled with cautious optimism, noting that the situation in Syria is witnessing gradual improvement with each visit, expressing his hope for concerted efforts to rebuild what was destroyed by the war, most importantly: the education sector.
