From Gaza to Bosnia: Palestinian family rebuilds life in Mostar

Dalila Al-Barawi shared their story in an interview with N1, recalling the trauma of displacement, the struggle for survival, and the hope of starting again.

“I grew up hearing Bosnian from my mother, who is from here, but I never learned it. When we arrived, I began speaking it. My children didn’t know a word, but after two years in school, they’re doing well,” Dalila said.

The first days of war

She described the morning when the first airstrikes began. “The children went to school, and I told my husband, ‘This isn’t good.’ He thought maybe it was just training. I called the school director and asked them to send the children back. Soon after, soldiers were on the streets. They handed us papers saying we had ten minutes to leave our village,” Dalila recalled.

It was October 11 when the family was forced to evacuate. Her teenage daughter was at her sister’s house at the time. “When I left with three of my children, my daughter was still there. We had no phone, no internet, no electricity. I finally managed to reach my sister, who tried three times to bring her — each time soldiers fired at their car. After six hours, they arrived. She was pale with fear. That was the worst moment for me,” Dalila said.

Survival and the road to Egypt

For 37 days, the family endured shortages of food and water. Every morning at 4 a.m., they stood in line for supplies. With the help of her brother, who had studied in Bosnia and married there, they were eventually placed on a list for evacuation.

“When we got to the border, they said five of our names weren’t on the list. We were 15 people in total. In the end, at one o’clock in the morning, they let us through, even though not everyone had papers,” Dalila explained.

Arriving in Egypt, the children finally saw running water and a bed. “They stayed in the hotel room for two days, showering and sleeping. My daughter spent two hours under the water,” she said.

A new beginning in Bosnia

When they landed in Sarajevo, the family was afraid. “We didn’t sleep that first night. But in the morning, when we saw how the staff treated us — not as refugees, but as people — everything changed,” Dalila said.

Now settled in Mostar, Dalila works as a translator, and the whole family contributes. “We Palestinians love to work,” she noted.

At first, her children resisted. They wanted to go back to Gaza and asked when the war would end. But once enrolled in school, they began to adapt. “People here are kind. One is in a madrasa, and three are in elementary school. They’re doing well,” Dalila said proudly.

Memories of Gaza, hopes for the future

Despite building a life in Bosnia, the family still dreams of Gaza. “The children remember our house, the sea. But our home is completely destroyed. Just a week ago, my uncle died — he left behind seven children. Life there is unbearable. People are dying while waiting for aid. So we work here and send them what money we can,” Dalila said.

Yet she remains hopeful: “When the war ends, we will go back.”

In the meantime, the Al-Barawi family is preparing for a new chapter in Mostar, where they are renovating an old house with the help of the Bosnian humanitarian organization Pomozi.ba. Dalila plans to open her home to the community: “We will make traditional Palestinian sweets, and everyone will be welcome to try them.”