Mahmoud's Journey: Germany Via Austria

Mahmoud's journey from Hungary to Germany in 2015 is a powerful story of resilience and hope. After a treacherous boat journey from Turkey to Greece, Mahmoud makes his way to Hungary, where he evades the authorities and eventually reaches the Austrian border. In Austria, Mahmoud is arrested, but he escapes and continues his journey to Germany, where he hopes to find refuge and a new home.

Mahmoud and his family walk to Austria from Hungary

Mahmoud and his family reach the Austrian border late at night. They are welcomed by Austrians who have seen footage of the crowd of refugees on the news. They are given food and water, and people cheer to encourage them.

Mahmoud thanks Allah for delivering them to Austria, and hopes to reach Germany with His blessing. He shows maturity and leadership in the face of trauma and hardship when he leads the refugees on their walk to Austria.

They are welcomed by Austrians who offer them food and water

Mahmoud and his family walk to Austria from Hungary. They are visible and exposed as they walk down the highway for 12 hours. When they reach the Austrian border, they are welcomed by Austrians who offer them food and water. The Austrians have seen footage of the crowd of refugees on the news and cheer to encourage them. Mahmoud thinks that people are finally seeing the refugees, and good people are helping them.

Mahmoud and his family then travel across Austria by train and arrive in Munich, Germany the next day. In Munich, the response is the same as in Austria. There are hundreds of Germans offering food, water, and other supplies.

They travel across Austria by train

Mahmoud and his family travel across Austria by train. They have walked from Hungary, where they were visible to whole crowds, and threatened with arrest by police if they stopped moving. After 12 hours, they reach the Austrian border, where they are welcomed by Austrians who have seen footage of the crowd of refugees on the news. They are given food and water, and Mahmoud thinks that people are finally seeing the refugees, and that good people are helping them.

Mahmoud and his family then reach the train station and travel overnight to Germany. They arrive in Munich, where they are met with the same response as in Austria. Hundreds of Germans offer them food, water, and other supplies.

Mahmoud began his odyssey in Turkey, where he was smuggled on a rubber boat to Greece. He made it to a deserted island in Greece, where he was picked up by another boat. From Greece, he travelled to Macedonia and on to Hungary, where he narrowly avoided the authorities. He slept in the woods for 12 hours before paying an agent to take him to the Austrian border.

They arrive in Munich, Germany

Mahmoud and his family travel across Austria by train and arrive in Munich, Germany the next day. The response is the same as in Austria: hundreds of Germans offer food, water, and other supplies.

Mahmoud's walk from the Hungarian detention centre to Austria represents the culmination of his transformation from someone who finds safety in invisibility to someone who understands the power of being seen. When he pushes open the door of the building where they are held, it is the fact that a UN observer is watching him that prevents the Hungarian guard from hurting or even shooting him. As he and the other refugees walk through Hungary, they are visible to whole crowds, from ordinary people on the sides of the road to police threatening to arrest them if they stop moving.

Mahmoud and the other refugees march down the highway toward Austria. They walk with the crowd for 12 hours, “visible” and “exposed”. Late that night, Mahmoud and his family reach the border of Austria. The refugees congratulate each other. Then, many alarms go off on their phones: a reminder that it is time for the last prayer of the day. Hundreds of refugees pray together. Mahmoud thanks Allah for delivering them to Austria, and hopes to reach Germany with His blessing. Mahmoud again shows his maturity and leadership in the face of trauma and hardship when he leads the refugees on their walk to Austria.

Mahmoud began his odyssey in Turkey where, like so many, he was smuggled on a rubber boat to Greece. “We barely made it,” he says, “the boat sank and many people drowned”. Mahmoud made it to a deserted island in Greece where he was picked up by another boat. From Greece he travelled to Macedonia and on to Hungary where he narrowly avoided the authorities; sleeping in woods for 12 hours before paying an agent to take him to the Austrian border.

They are welcomed by hundreds of Germans offering food, water, and other supplies

Mahmoud and his family walk to Austria from Hungary. Police officers threaten to arrest them if they do not stop walking, but they continue anyway. After 12 hours, they reach the Austrian border, where they are welcomed by Austrians who have seen footage of the crowd of refugees on the news. People cheer to encourage them, and they are given food and water.

Mahmoud and his family then travel across Austria by train and arrive in Munich, Germany the next day. In Munich, they are welcomed by hundreds of Germans offering food, water, and other supplies.

Mahmoud's walk from the Hungarian detention centre to Austria represents the culmination of his transformation from someone who finds safety in invisibility to someone who understands the power of being seen. When he pushes open the door of the building where they are held, it is the fact that a UN observer is watching him that prevents the Hungarian guard from hurting or even shooting him. As he and the other refugees walk through Hungary, they are visible to whole crowds.

Mahmoud's journey to Germany is not without danger, however. In Vienna, the Austrian authorities claim that they cannot accept more refugees in Austria, and he is arrested and scheduled for deportation to Germany. He escapes and eventually gets himself on a flight to the UK, arriving in September 2015.

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