These Are the Top Google Search Terms in Syria and They Are Heartbreaking
These Are the Top Google Search Terms in Syria and They Are Heartbreaking
2 minute read
Refugees arrive on the shores of the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey on a inflatable boat on 29 September.Anadolu Agency—Getty Images
The developed world turns to Google to indulge its ephemeral interests — on Monday, “National Coffee Day” and “Trevor Noah” were among the most searched terms in the U.S. — but those online in war-torn Syria are using the search engine to find the answers that might ensure their survival.
For the past four years, a bloody civil war has ravaged the country, driving around 4.1 million refugees to escape their homeland and make the perilous journey across the Middle East and into Europe. A report by al-Jazeera reveals that the two most popular searches in Syria are currently “immigration to Germany” and “asylum in Germany,” with many also looking for “maps of Europe in Arabic.”
Those Syrians who are not seeking escape are using Google’s answers to keep themselves safe at home. Over the past two weeks, the country has heavily used the search engine to locate nearby hospitals, and to learn how to treat burn wounds and perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. “The Red Cross Syria” and “prehospital trauma life support” also top search lists, al-Jazeera says.
Still, if the web traffic is a reliable metric, most Syrians would prefer to leave their country rather than secure themselves within it. According to al-Jazeera, there has been a surge in searches for travel routes between Turkey and Greece — an escape route that has become imperative for those fleeing the conflict.
The Tiny Greek Island of Kos at the Center of the Refugee Crisis
A dinghy overcrowded with Afghan migrants arrives on the Greek island of Kos, after crossing a part of the Aegean Sea between Turkey and Greece, on May 27, 2015.Angelos Tzortzinis—AFP/Getty ImagesAfghan migrants arrive on the Greek island of Kos, after crossing a part of the Aegean Sea between Turkey and Greece, on May 27, 2015. Angelos Tzortzinis—AFP/Getty ImagesAn Afghan migrant girl holds the hand of a woman as they arrive on the Greek island of Kos, after crossing a part of the Aegean Sea between Turkey and Greece, on May 27, 2015. Angelos Tzortzinis—AFP/Getty ImagesA Syrian refugee prays on the beach after arriving on the Greek island of Kos, via a dinghy boat over part of the Aegean Sea from Turkey to Greece, on May 26, 2015. Yannis Behrakis—ReutersHundreds of newly arrived migrants walk toward a temporary shelter after crossing a part of the Aegean Sea from Turkey to Greece, on May 26, 2015. Yannis Behrakis—ReutersAn Afghan migrant family poses next to a deserted hotel, where hundreds of migrants have found temporary shelter, on the Greek island of Kos on May 27, 2015. Angelos Tzortzinis—AFP/Getty ImagesAfghan migrants wash next to a deserted hotel, where hundreds of migrants have found temporary shelter, on the Greek island of Kos on May 27, 2015. Angelos Tzortzinis—AFP/Getty ImagesA migrant man from Bangladesh brushes his hair in a broken mirror in an abandoned hotel, acting as a temporary shelter, on the Greek island of Kos on May 29, 2015.Dan Kitwood—Getty ImagesA mother sits with her two young sons as they get ready to sleep in the corridor of an abandoned hotel that many migrants are using as a temporary shelter on the Greek island of Kos on May 30, 2015.Dan Kitwood—Getty ImagesMigrants gather outside the police station on the Greek island of Kos to collect documentation to facilitate their onward journey into Europe on June 1, 2015.Dan Kitwood—Getty ImagesAn Afghan woman sits with her child at a dock at the port of the Greek island of Kos on May 27, 2015. Angelos Tzortzinis—AFP/Getty ImagesLife vests and a deflated dinghy are seen on a beach on the Greek island of Kos, following the arrival of Afghan immigrants, on May 30, 2015.Yannis Behrakis—Reuters
