Living at Istanbul Airport for a Year: I Want to Return to Syria and Die There

A Syrian man has been trapped at Istanbul Airport for a year, sleeping in a 'problematic passenger room' and waiting to be deported back to his war-torn country. For the first few months, he was afraid of deportation, but now he no longer cares. In fact, he is even looking forward to returning, reports the Patria News Agency.

 - At least I will die there and it will all be over. I am dying every day here - Fadi Mansour confided to his relatives.

Mansour's ordeal began back in August 2012. The war had already started, and this young man fled to Lebanon fearing conscription. However, immediately upon arrival, he was kidnapped by a gang who demanded a ransom for him. It remains unclear whether anyone paid for him, but in any case, Fadi found himself in Turkey in 2014. His plan was to go live in Malaysia, but his dreams were shattered when the border police at Atatürk discovered he had forged documents.

From that moment on, his hell began. The poor man has not seen natural light for a year, but he has not slept in darkness either. The lights in the 'problematic passenger room' are always on, and after a year, Fadi discovered his only wish is to fall asleep in the dark.

During his stay at the airport, he was even attacked by another problematic passenger, and Turkish authorities decided to return him to Lebanon. However, the authorities in Beirut decided to deny him entry into the country and send him back to Istanbul.

The unfortunate Syrian has clearly had enough and asked the Turkish authorities on Twitter to release him with the message 'a year is quite enough'. Amnesty International has also become involved in the whole story, demanding Mansour's immediate release, writes Jutarnji.