The child, identified as three-year-old Aylan Kurdi, is believed to be one of 12 Syrians who died when their boats sank trying to reach Greece. (AFP PHOTO / DOGAN NEWS AGENCY)
KOBANI, Syria:
Two Syrian toddlers who drowned with their mother as they were trying to reach Greece were laid to rest in the Syrian town of Kobani today, a Reuters witness said.
A photograph of the body of one of the toddlers, 3-year-old Aylan Kurdi, washed up on the shore, appeared in newspapers around the world this week, prompting sympathy and outrage at the perceived inaction of developed nations in helping refugees.
Abdullah Kurdi, their father, wept as their bodies were buried alongside each other in the "Martyrs' Ceremony" in the predominantly Kurdish town of Kobani, also known as Ayn al-Arab, near at the border with Turkey.
Speaking at the border crossing, Kurdi said he hoped the death of his family would encourage Arab states to help Syrian refugees.
"I want from Arab governments - not European countries - to see (what happened to) my children, and because of them to help people," he said in footage posted online by a local radio station.
A photograph of the body of one of the toddlers, 3-year-old Aylan Kurdi, washed up on the shore, appeared in newspapers around the world this week, prompting sympathy and outrage at the perceived inaction of developed nations in helping refugees.
Abdullah Kurdi, their father, wept as their bodies were buried alongside each other in the "Martyrs' Ceremony" in the predominantly Kurdish town of Kobani, also known as Ayn al-Arab, near at the border with Turkey.
Speaking at the border crossing, Kurdi said he hoped the death of his family would encourage Arab states to help Syrian refugees.
"I want from Arab governments - not European countries - to see (what happened to) my children, and because of them to help people," he said in footage posted online by a local radio station.
© Thomson Reuters 2015
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