Belgian Mothers Unite: Jihadist’s Parent and Terror Victim’s Mom Pen Book for Social Change

After the pains and resentments, the time has come to write a book. The Belgian-Moroccan, Fatima Ezzarhouni, is the mother of Abdellah Nouamane, who left to do jihad in Syria in 2013, at the age of 18. Sophie Pirson, on the other hand, is the mother of Léonor, a thirty-year-old woman seriously injured in the hand on the morning of March 22, 2016, in the metro carriage where a suicide bomber blew himself up, recalls Sud-ouest.

A project initiated by a group, launched by two clinical sociologists, will eventually bring these two women together. The objective of the project is to allow the mothers of jihadists and victims of the wave of attacks in 2015-2016 to exchange and share their pain.

"We want to deposit what is important to us, with the hope of bringing a reflection on what we can do together to counter the barbarism," confides Sophie Pirson. For Fatima Ezzarhouni, it is a question of getting a message across. She recounts having lived a nightmare since her eldest son had joined the ranks of Daesh.

On March 22, 2016, a double explosive attack had been carried out in Brussels. The toll was 32 dead and more than 320 injured. The attack was claimed by the Islamic State. Pending the conclusion of the interviews between the two women next March, Sophie and Fatima are looking for a publisher.