Save the Children is helping thousands of children like Sana and her sisters to access education, to learn how to communicate about their experiences and — vitally — to learn how to be children again.

Sana and her Sisters: Leaving Syria

Three-year-old Sana* fled Syria with her mother and three sisters. Sana's 12 year old sister Yasmine* describes their last moments in Syria.

"We left Syria one week ago. There were so many explosions...so we had to leave Syria. I remember two things — our house being bombed, and not having any bread. Most of the houses were being hit. We had to stay in one room, all of us. The other rooms were being hit — shooting from the side of the other rooms. The bombs were hitting constantly, I was very scared."

As their home was destroyed around them, the family stayed confined to one room for two weeks.

"I felt so afraid, I knew we could not move from that one room,” Yasmine said. “There were 13 of us in total, crammed into one room. We did not leave that room for two weeks. It was always so loud."

But the worst memory of all – the young girls witnessed the death of their father.

"My father left the room. I watched my father leave, and watched as my father was shot outside our home. I started to cry, I was so sad,” Yasmine said. “We were living a normal life. We had enough food, now we depend on others. Everything changed for me that day."

The girls’ mother took them and fled to a neighboring country, where they live in an informal settlement. Their tent is small, dank and dark, and none of the children are going to school. Their mother leaves them each day to try and find work in nearby towns, and to try and find food. All of the young girls are deeply troubled by what they witnessed in Syria.

Save the Children is on the ground in Syria and is helping refugee communities throughout the region including, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. We are providing refugee and displaced children and their families with food, emergency care, shelter, protection, clean water and clothes. Please donate now to the Child Refugee Crisis Relief Fund and don't let Syrian children become a lost generation.

*Names have been changed to protect identities