Six years ago on March 15, fighting erupted in Syria that would change the face of the country forever.
In 2011, the regime of Bashar Al Assad clashed with anti-government forces in battles that would later involve ISIL, Al Nusra Front and the Free Syrian Army, leaving cities in ruins.
Consequently, about 5 million Syrians fled to neighbouring countries in what has become the largest humanitarian crisis since the Second World War.
More than 120,000 Syrians moved to the UAE and were given residency visas between 2011 and last year. That nearly doubled the Syrian population in the UAE to 240,000 as of last September.
Last summer, the Government said it would take in 15,000 refugees in the coming years.
The Syrian families that arrived here have found peace and employment. But most have lost their homes and are unable to return. Some have also struggled to find places for their children in schools and struggled with the costs of living. Here, six Syrians who fled tell their stories.
"I left my country to escape serving in Bashar Al Assad’s army or any party involved in destroying my country and killing my people. All we saw was bloodshed and I was terrified.
"I was supposed to serve in the army as part of the compulsory military service, but I fled Syria in 2014 when the war became severe.
"Both the regime and the extremist rebels were bombing the country with all kinds of weapons.
"My family’s home in Aleppo was levelled, bombed into the ground – just like many buildings and homes.
"My brother and I left Syria in search of a new life. We were lucky to have escaped the war in our country but our plight continues.
"My brother went to Turkey and I came to Dubai.
"I was lucky enough to find a job in a restaurant serving
Arabic cuisine in Satwa, where I rented a bed space in an apartment.
"The two owners of the restaurant, a Syrian and a Palestinian, had a fight and decided to close the restaurant. My residency visa was consequently cancelled.
"Afterwards, I worked in another restaurant. The owner said he had to test my culinary skills for a month. I accepted and worked with an invalid residency visa. After the test period,the restaurant owner refused to renew my residency visa and gave me half of my salary. That meant that I could no longer stay in Satwa, so I looked elsewhere for a cheaper place.
"I moved to an apartment in Hor Al Anz and lived with some Asians. The bed space cost Dh400. I kept looking for a job. But with my bad luck, the owners of the restaurants I sought employment at asked me to work for a period of time. But after the period passed, they refused to renew my residency visa or give me my pay.
"Many of them said that ‘we don’t renew residency visas for Syrians’.
"I ran out of money and I have been on the streets since last June. I sleep now in mosques in Muraqqabat. Sometimes I sleep in parks, and I ask the restaurants nearby for food and water.
"I have been to charity organisations and people there told me that they only give money to families, women and the elderly.

Source: The National