London, Ont. woman pleads with federal government to help reunite her family
Londoner Ola Dahman, who left war-torn Gaza over two years ago, is pleading with the Canadian government to help reunite her family here in Canada.
Twenty-three-month-old Layan has never met her father or two brothers in person. They are in Gaza, and she lives with her mother Ola Dahman in London.
“You feel that you are walking, talking, but you are disconnected from the surrounding, because you always think about your sons, when will you see them,” says Dahman.
Dahman came to Canada on a visitor visa back in May of 2019, she was five months pregnant at the time, and decided that it was too risky to go back home to Gaza.
“It was not easy, it was tough, I spent all five months, until I gave her birth, crying. Every day every night and even at night when I went to sleep I always imagine that I was hugging my youngest son.”
The mother of three received refugee status in October 2020.
She is one of a dozen Convention refugees from Palestinian who are in Canada, and have put in a permanent residency application for their loved ones to be brought over from Gaza.
Ola Dahman is seen with her husband and two sons in 2015, four years before she fled Gaza. (Source: Ola Dahman)
Ola Dahman is seen with her husband and two sons in 2015, four years before she fled Gaza. (Source: Ola Dahman)
“The current processing time for most permanent resident application is 39 months. Folks like OIa have been here anywhere from two to four years already. So the pain of family separation, which can be anywhere from three to six years now, is incalculable, indescribable,” says Matthew Behrens of the Rural Refugee Rights Network.
Behrens has been lobbying the federal government to expedite Dahman’s application.
“What we’re calling on Immigration Canada to do is to issue a temporary resident permit that would allow the family to come over to Canada where they can be safe, they can reunite, and they can start on the path to healing, while their permanent residency application is being processed."
Behrens says the violence in Gaza is ongoing, and fears the family is running out of time.
“If they’re left in Gaza for another month, two or three months, while they are processing their applications for temporary residents permits, God forbid that someone is killed, when they could have been safely here during that processing.”
Dahman has a master's degree in computer engineering and is currently enrolled in Fanshawe College's Software and Information Systems Testing program.
She hopes to finish school and start working in time to support her family if and when they are able to come to Canada.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Israel attacks Iran, Reuters sources say; drones reported over Isfahan
Israel has attacked Iran, three people familiar with the matter told Reuters, as Iranian state media reported early on Friday that its forces had destroyed drones, days after Iran launched a retaliatory drone strike on Israel.
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer denied bail after being charged with killing Canadian couple
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
Nearly half of China's major cities are sinking, researchers say
Nearly half of China's major cities are suffering 'moderate to severe' levels of subsidence, putting millions at risk of flooding especially as sea levels rise.
Prince Harry formally confirms he is now a U.S. resident
Prince Harry, the son of King Charles III and fifth in line to the British throne, has formally confirmed he is now a U.S. resident.
Judge says 'no evidence fully supports' murder case against Umar Zameer as jury starts deliberations
The judge presiding over the trial of a man accused of fatally running over a Toronto police officer is telling jurors the possible verdicts they may reach based on the evidence in the case.
Health Canada to change sperm donor screening rules for men who have sex with men
Health Canada will change its longstanding policy restricting gay and bisexual men from donating to sperm banks in Canada, CTV News has learned. The federal health agency has adopted a revised directive removing the ban on gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, effective May 8.
Colin Jost names one celebrity who is great at hosting 'Saturday Night Live'
Colin Jost, who co-anchors Saturday Night Live's 'Weekend Update,' revealed who he thinks is one of the best hosts on the show.
Sports columnist apologizes for 'oafish' comments directed at Caitlin Clark. The controversy isn't over
A male columnist has apologized for a cringeworthy moment during former University of Iowa superstar and college basketball's highest scorer Caitlin Clark's first news conference as an Indiana Fever player.
'Shopaholic' author Sophie Kinsella reveals brain cancer diagnosis
Sophie Kinsella, the best-selling author behind the 'Shopaholic' book series, has revealed that she is receiving treatment for brain cancer.