The father of a seven-year-old girl who died at Mater Dei Hospital after being airlifted from the island’s search and rescue zone has described his distress at being separated from his family.

Rahf Alhossain died in hospital earlier this month after receiving treatment following a heart attack on board by the NGO boat that rescued her.

Volunteers from SOS Méditerranée said they battled for 45 minutes to resuscitate the girl when she collapsed shortly after being rescued and before being taken to hospital for further treatment.

But while Rahf’s mother and younger sister were brought to Malta with her, her father, Morhaf was not allowed to accompany them and was instead taken to Germany where he said he is being held in a refugee camp.

Rahf was described as “full of life” by her father.

Recounting being separated from his family, who he said left Lebanon to find medical help for their youngest daughter, Noor, Morhaf said “it felt like my life had ended, that a feeling of helplessness was drowning me”.

Although Morhaf and his wife, Login have managed to stay in contact, they now face a distressing and potentially long wait to be reunited.

“They told us we have to apply for family reunification but that it takes a long time... my daughter can’t handle this separation,” he said, speaking to Times of Malta from Germany through an interpreter.

Surviving sister in distress

“Noor is always distressed and always crying and her mother cannot sleep at night because of her constant cries,” said Morhaf, stressing he felt “helpless” separated from his family and worried something might happen to them.

“I feel like I’m losing my other daughter now too,” he said.

Morhaf is asking to be reunited with his family and to be allowed to come to Malta to mourn his daughter: “She is buried there and I can’t even come and see her. Is this what the world has come to?”

­Rahf wanted to succeed in life to help her younger sister, who was born deaf, Morhaf said.

Imam Mohammad Elsadi, who leads the Muslim community in Malta, told Times of Malta that Rahf was buried in the cemetery next to the Paola mosque.

The Home Affairs Ministry said that, in such cases, “the priority is the evacuation of those requiring medical assistance and that medical assistance is provided. Any family reunification process then follows in accordance with the relevant laws and EU directives.”

Human rights NGO Aditus Foundation director Neil Falzon acknowledged that, although rescue situations were difficult to navigate, separating families during a medical emergency such as in the girl’s case was “ridiculous.”

“Family separations happen all the time and in airlifts, it’s difficult to coordinate non-urgent cases due to logistics… but what should happen is immediate reunification,” he said.

Falzon said that, while the law “would always promote family unity”, potential logistical difficulties, such as the available space on the rescuing helicopter and confirming family connections, made such separations “almost inevitable”.

However, he stressed “the most important thing is that the best interests of the child be taken into account”.

Falzon added that while reunifications typically took “weeks” to coordinate when member states decided to act, “if they don’t, it could take months, so it’s a matter of commitment”.

Rahf's father said "life is meaningless after her death." Photo: Alhossain family.

‘Full of life, always happy’

Morhaf described his late daughter as having been “full of life, always happy, always smiling and always very approachable. She had a very strong and kind personality.”

“Now that spark is no longer there.... we’re devastated; life is meaningless after her death.”

He said that, even in her final hours, Rahf had been a source of strength to the family, encouraging them when the boat they were travelling on encountered engine difficulties.

Morhaf claimed the family had decided to make the attempt to cross to Europe to find medical treatment for Noor, six years old, who, he said, was born deaf and who they are hoping to find a cochlear implant for.

A cochlear implant can provide a sense of sound to those who are profoundly deaf or severely hard of hearing.

“Rahf’s goal in life was to succeed and make it through so she could help her sister,” he said.

Volunteers from SOS Méditerranée said they battled for 45 minutes to resuscitate Rahf after she suffered a heart attack while being rescued. Photo: Alhossain family.

The journey

Morhaf, a 36-year-old tiler, said the family had been living in Lebanon as refugees for two years after leaving Syria when the now-deposed Assad government tried to conscript him into the army.

But faced with ongoing economic challenges and “very difficult” conditions for Syrian refugees in Lebanon, they decided to try and reach Europe via Libya.

According to UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, an estimated 90% of the 1.5 million Syrian refugees in Lebanon are living in “extreme poverty”. The European Commission says Syrian refugees “face discrimination and bureaucratic hurdles” in Lebanon.

Saying his family paid smugglers some €22,000 to make the crossing, Morhaf said applying from Lebanon would have been “much more expensive” with approval far from guaranteed, adding the family had not been able to find help from charities or other international organisations.

He said the ill-fated crossing was the family’s third attempt, having been turned back twice and briefly imprisoned by the Libyan coast guard, militia groups frequently accused of brutal treatment of migrants by NGOs.

Rahf was buried in the cemetery next to the Paola Mosque. Photo: Alhossain family.

“The trip was going okay, then, after about 20 hours, there were engine problems. That’s when Rahf kept on hugging me and asking God for strength,” said Morhaf of the crossing onboard the “old boat” holding about 35 people.

“My only appeal now is to reunite my family,” he said.

Morhaf asked Times of Malta to share the following poem he wrote in memory of his daughter, which was translated from Arabic by SOS Mediterranee:

On the shore of death, your journey ended.

Your little heart, still unripe, could not endure.

It was filled with love, overflowing until the very last breath.

You left, my beautiful one, my little one.

Your gentle voice has vanished forever,

Leaving behind a father, a mother, and a sister -

Lost, wandering between sea and sky.

How could your kind heart leave your dears suddenly?

You bore the hardship of travel, the cruelty of the waves –

All for what? For a dignified life.

Yes, you have found it now, Rahf.

You are in eternal bliss.

May your soul rest in peace, my love.