ISLAMABAD: A group of Syrians left their country in 2011 to escape the complex civil war in their homeland and found themselves in Pakistan while searching for relative peace.
It was not easy for them to settle down in a foreign land. Yet, they managed to thrive on the deeply disruptive phase of their lives.
Struggling to earn a living, Hussam Hag Kasem, 28, met an established Afghan refugee, Saleem Shah Hashmi, in Islamabad who provided him a small space to set up a food joint and encouraged him to introduce authentic Arab cuisine in the country’s federal capital.
Kasem also introduced his friend, Abu Amir, 32, to Hashmi.
The interaction among the three men resulted in the founding of two food joints – Kasem’s “The Syrian Guys” and Amir’s “Syrian Tastes” – in the central marketplace of Islamabad’s F10 residential sector.
While customers took time to notice the two eateries among thousands of kiosks selling street food in the city, the breakthrough arrived when Abu Amir, aka Adnan, caught the media’s eye this October while preparing Syrian delicacies in his Arab clothing.
Within a matter of hours, mainstream and social media propelled him to celebrity status, making him attract previously unprecedented number of customers.
The rest, as they say, is history: The two eateries serving the Syrian food became culinary sensations, drawing foodies from across the country and beyond.
In this video, Arab News features the success story of the two Syrians and documents how their efforts to turn their life around bore fruit.
Syrian food joints attract customers from across Pakistan
Syrian food joints attract customers from across Pakistan
- Syrian shawarma and shish taouk are two most liked Arab street foods among Pakistanis
- Customers wait for hours to taste Syrian delicacies
Pakistan to take on India in Super Six fixture of Men’s U19 World Cup — PCB
- Pakistan need to defeat India by a healthy margin to secure a spot in semifinals
- England sit at the top of the table with six points in the mega cricket tournament
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan are all geared up to take on India in their final Super Six fixture of the ICC Under-19 (U19) Men’s Cricket World Cup, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said late Friday.
Pakistan will face arch-rivals India at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo on Sunday, February 1, with the first ball scheduled to be bowled at 9.30am local time.
The last time two sides met was during the ACC Men’s U19 Asia Cup final, where Pakistan defeated India by 191 runs to clinch the title at the ICC Academy Ground in Dubai. Sameer Minhas scored 172 runs while right-arm pacer Ali Raza bagged four wickets.
Pakistan, who currently have four points and are placed third in Group 2 of the Super Six stage, need to defeat India by a healthy margin to secure a spot in the semifinals. England sit at the top of the table with six points and are currently playing New Zealand at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo.
“Our next match is against India, which is very important as there is a semifinal at stake. We have clear plans for every match and we put in a lot of hard work accordingly,” said Usman Khan, who has scored 122 runs from four matches in the ongoing mega event.
“We will try to perform well in the next game to qualify for the next stage.”
After arriving in Bulawayo from Harare on Wednesday afternoon, Pakistan took a day off before participating in a scenario-based practice game at the Bulawayo Athletic Club on Friday. Pakistan will also take part in a training session at the same venue today (Saturday).
“Before the tournament, we held several camps in Multan where a strong focus was placed on fielding. We had productive sessions there and as a result the team has improved a lot in this department,” Khan said.
“Our preparations have been very good. The scenario-based match was of high quality and it closely reflected actual match conditions.”
PAKISTAN SQUAD
Farhan Yousaf (captain), Usman Khan (vice-captain), Abdul Subhan, Ahmed Hussain, Ali Hasan Baloch, Ali Raza, Daniyal Ali Khan, Hamza Zahoor (wk), Huzaifa Ahsan, Momin Qamar, Mohammad Sayyam, Niqab Shafiq, Sameer Minhas and Umar Zaib
