Pakistan
Meet Zeshan
Zeshan is barely four days old and already a refugee.
Less than a year ago, his mother and father were homeowners living in a middle-class neighborhood surrounded by lush mountains and streams. But when the bombs started, Zeshan’s father and his then-pregnant wife made the journey to a refugee camp in Mardan, Pakistan.
Zeshan was born in a hospital near the Mardan camp. While Zeshan’s birth brings great joy, anxieties are high.
The family’s living situation is crowded. They share a 10’ x 10’ tent with six others; 9,000 more live in their camp. Kits are distributed so families have basic necessities and are able to cook food.
In all, four million people have been forced from their homes as fighting escalated between Pakistan’s Army and Taliban militants, making this one of the fastest swells of displaced people in recent history.
"We want to go home as soon as possible," Zeshan’s uncle said, but many are afraid that it is not safe to return. Those who have made it home report that homes, farms, schools, and clinics are all destroyed, and access to basic necessities is no longer available.