A 10-year-old Syrian child who is stranded in Turkey has made a video appeal to the king of Morocco to be granted entrance to the country after being denied three times.
Haider Jalabi, originally from Homs, Syria, has been attempting to obtain a visa to Morocco to be with his father who is already living in the country with his Moroccan wife. Jalabi's mother is dead.
Previously, Jalabi's father traveled to Turkey in hopes of bringing his son to live with him and his new wife, however, they were unable to obtain the needed visa. Jalabi's father maintains legal residency within Morocco through his wife and has a job that would allow him to support his son.
In an effort to appeal the denial, Jalabi recorded a video in which he respectfully greets the king. He then briefly explains the situation and asks why he should be denied the visa.
Social media users have jumped at the opportunity to support Jalabi with the hashtag #MoroccoLetHaiderEnter.
Reactions have ranged from quoting the Quran in the boy's support to confusion and outrage over the situation.
Others have sought to highlight the young boys plight and his dreams for a better future.
And many have just expressed their solidarity through messages to raise awareness and express sadness.
Jalabi remains stranded in Turkey where he lives with Boutaina Azzabi, a Dutch-Moroccan journalist.
"It's not the easiest thing to take care of a child who has been through so much - moving from place to place like that is a lot for a 10-year-old," Azzabi said, according to Middle East Eye
"He has nightmares in the evenings, and sometimes when we go out and have fun he cries and says he wishes he could do these things with his father. We just want him to have a normal life."
The king of Morocco has previously shown support for Syrian refugees, having personally visited refugee camps. Moroccan authorities have yet to comment on the case.