* Any views expressed in this opinion piece are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.
Mohammed spent a year and a half living under IS rule after they captured his home city of Ramadi, Iraq, more than two years ago. Finally managing to flee early last year, Mohammed and his family survived on food from the World Food Programme (WFP).
He has been working as part of the team helping to stock WFP warehouses in preparation to help those forced to flee the military offensive on the Iraqi city of Mosul. This is his story.
The news about Mosul takes me back to the time when Islamic State took my city in 2014. Rockets fell like rain and I still have the scars from the shrapnel that caught me on my shoulder and left arm. It was a terrifying time and all I could think about was the safety of my family.
Life was turned upside-down overnight. I was afraid all the time. They monitored everything we were doing — what we ate, what we wore. The use of cell phones was punishable by death.
Over time, there was very little food. We lived without food, water and electricity for so long. At one time, I remember a can of baby milk cost US$40 and no one could afford to buy it. It felt like they wanted us to return to a life in the Stone Age where we survived solely on bread, dates and water. One of my relatives managed to smuggle food in from the desert just so we were able to eat — but he risked his life to bring it. Life was a living hell.
In total, I spent a year and a half living under Islamic State before finally managing to flee from Ramadi last year.
It was a two-week journey from Ramadi once we had escaped. As part of the journey, we walked for 8 kilometres on foot, eating nothing but the odd piece of bread and some dates. My children were dehydrated and my wife was still breastfeeding our youngest so it was a difficult time. I am so grateful for the food the World Food Programme gave us when we arrived at the camp. It felt like someone cared. The children were so happy to get the biscuits, dates and canned food.
Now I work in the WFP warehouse, offloading the trucks and stocking the warehouse with food so it is ready to go to families who find themselves in the situation we were in. It is the least I can do and it means I can now afford to buy food for my family while helping other people who have had to flee conflict too. I see myself in them. They desperately need this food.
With the Mosul offensive underway, we have been working tirelessly in the warehouse, pre-positioning food to respond to the immediate needs of people who have been affected by the upsurge in fighting.
Before Islamic State captured my home, I woke up every day with hope. My family were safe, I had work, we were happy. Now I am just waiting until it is safe to return.
