Survivor who lost all family members in Aegean Sea returned to Koya

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A young survivor who lost his entire family when their boat capsized in the Aegean Sea in December returned to his hometown of Koya on Friday following several delays. 

Then 11-years-old, Rewar Rebwar’s parents and siblings had been attempting to reach Europe across the Aegean Sea when their boat capsized on December 23, killing both his parents and his siblings. Rewar, who has since turned 12, managed to escape death by holding the foot of a person who was trying to survive the incident.

Relatives and friends of Rewar as well as residents of Koya city warmly welcomed the young survivor on Friday after the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) Department of Foriegn Relations (DFR) arranged a flight. 

Rewar was handed over to the KRG authorities in Greece on Thursday  “after making sure that he was in good health and his legal procedures were completed,” DFR said on Thursday. 

The child will live with his grandparents, as he requested, his uncle Rekan Abdullah told Rudaw on Thursday.

The dead bodies of the members of his family will be returned once their DNA tests are approved by Greek authorities, he added. 

Thousands of people from the Kurdistan Region have taken risky - and often illegal - paths like the Aegean Sea and Belarus borders to reach Europe. Many have died on the way. Their tragic stories dominated the headlines of the international media late last year. 

“I feel very happy to be back,” Rewar told reporters on Friday. 

He said he was treated very well in Greece but he was worried that his return was postponed several times.