| 11 year old Ahmed lost his father when he was one. His father was a policeman who died in the line of duty and was posthumously awarded with the Order for Bravery. Whilst Ahmed cannot remember him, he used to tell his mother that he wanted to be a policeman also. “I want to get the bandits” he used to say.
In May 2004 however, his dream was shattered. One day on his way home from school, he disturbed a landmine and it exploded beneath his feet. In Chechnya it is estimated that there are more than 500,000 undischarged landmines and up to 10,000 victims of explosions.
The explosion left Ahmed fighting for his life. Since then he has had a further four operations in Grozny and three more in Moscow. Ahmed is physically disabled and unable to walk. He also cannot talk, read, write or count.
Following his tragic accident, the family’s circumstances dramatically changed. Ahmed’s mother Zulai and his four sisters now spend all their time caring for him. Given the harsh condition of their flat - which has only one room and no water or sewerage system - their task is even more difficult. In between caring for him at home, they have to endure many trips to various different doctors, hospitals and specialists. Many of these are in Moscow.
Islamic Relief’s One-To-One Sponsorship Programme contributes towards alleviating child poverty in the world’s poorest communities. For those such as Ahmed, the programme aims to take care of the orphan’s needs in terms of their health, education and social welfare.
Find out more about Islamic Relief's Orphan Sponsorship programme
Find out more about Islamic Relief in Chechnya
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