What happened to the Syrian refugee tripped by Hungarian reporter?
One Syrian refugee's dreams of life in Europe are coming true. After being tripped to the ground on Hungary, he now has a home and a job in Spain.
Osama Abdul Mohsen, a Syrian refugee who was filmed being tripped up by a camerawoman as he fled police in Hungary, poses holding Zaid and his other son Mohammad al Ghadabe at their new home in Getafe, Spain, Thursday.
Andrea Comas/Reuters
It's not all bad for the hundreds of thousands of refugees flooding into Europe, as many Europeans are going out of their way to help make exhausted migrants feel welcome.
One Syrian refugee received a rough welcome to Europe – he was tripped by a journalist identified as Hungarian Petra László while running with a child at the Hungarian border. But in a case of reversed fortunes, the camerawoman has been fired, and he has been offered a position as a soccer coach in his new home, reports ABC News.
Osama Abdul Mohsen arrived with his sons in Madrid Thursday and thanked the crowd gathered, the Associated Press reported. "Now I feel that I am [flying] in the sky,” he said. “I am very happy."
A video on the United Kingdom's Channel 4 News Facebook page shows the man with his family, appearing surprised but grateful as they board a train. Mr. Mohsen plays with the child as they ride to their new life. He is excited to take his sons to a Real Madrid game once they get settled.
The Spanish soccer coaching school CENAFE was responsible for the family's arrival. Officials at the Spanish academy Getafe heard Mohsen had been a soccer coach in Syria and offered to give him a job when he learns Spanish. With the school's help, the family has a place to live near the school, and help getting legalized. The school will now try to help bring Mohsen's wife and two other children out of a refugee camp in Turkey.
"Hopefully this will serve as an example to the rest of Europe,” school president Miguel Galan told the Associated Press. "We need to help these people."
Other Europeans have tried to make refugees feel welcome in a variety of ways. A group of mostly retired volunteers in Elchingen, Germany, has formed a group to help refugees get settled in their village. They offer maps, German lessons, backpacks for the children, and even teach the newly arrived how to ride bikes, The Christian Science Monitor reported.
This is one example of a new Willkommenskultur, or "welcome culture," Germans are sharing with thousands of refugees. Young Berliners have created Refugees Welcome, which connects refugees to Austrian and German families who have room to share. The founders hope this will smooth the transition into Europe and help the newcomers integrate more quickly, the Monitor reported.
Even France has reversed its policies almost overnight and began welcoming refugees on both a popular and government level, the Monitor reported on Sept. 8.