In response to the mocking caricature drawn in the French magazine Charlie Hebdo showing the Syrian refugee who died on the shores of Turkey last September after his family failed in their attempt to reach Greece, Queen Rania posted a drawing on her Twitter and Facebook accounts with the question “What would Aylan have grown up to be if he was still alive?” written above the drawing. The cartoon was drawn by the Jordanian artist Osama Hajjaj and shows different scenarios- the first is of an innocent child, the second is of a hard working student and the third shows a doctor.
Queen Rania published the drawing in English and Arabic and is followed on Twitter by more than 4.45 million people from around the world. The queen wrote “He could have become Doctor Aylan or a teacher or a loving father” and her post received comments and reactions in different languages from her followers.
French, German and western newspapers have recently published offensive articles and cartoons of Syrian refugees in the west who have fled from the hell of war in Syria and the system led by Bashar Al-Assad’s regime. Observers were surprised with these campaigns especially after refugees were unconditionally welcomed in these countries. Popular demands are being voiced to reconsider receiving refugees after some terrorists exploited groups of refugees and tried to enter some European countries to the detriment of refugees in general.