Separated family pleased Canada may fast-track immigration applications from people in earthquake zone

A refugee sponsorship group in Saskatoon is encouraged by news that Ottawa may fast-track existing immigration applications from people affected by the recent earthquakes in Syria and Turkey.

The Moms for Refugees group is helping to privately sponsor a Syrian couple in Turkey who have been separated from their 10-year-old son Adnan Kharsa, who lives in Saskatoon, for nearly six years.

"It's really sad that something this devastating is actually giving a spark of hope," said Kyla Avis, the lead volunteer in the Moms for Refugees group.

On Wednesday, Immigration Minister Sean Fraser told reporters that Ottawa is having a "conversation" about fast-tracking permanent residency applicants who are in the earthquake zones.

"Some could be very severely impacted, some may be in a region that has not suffered the same impact as a result of the earthquake," said Fraser, adding that they're gathering information and trying to figure out what more can be done.

Asked for more information on Fraser's comments, the federal department provided CBC News with a statement.

"Canada is deeply concerned for the safety and well-being of those impacted by the earthquakes," it said. "We are watching the situation very closely and determining the best path forward."

More than 22,000 people have been killed and tens of thousands injured after a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck Turkey and Syria on Monday. Some 12,000 buildings in Turkey have either collapsed or sustained serious damage, according to officials. The humanitarian crisis comes after decades of civil war in the region, which has displaced millions of people, and worsening economic turmoil.

Wafeek Kharsa, Adnan's uncle, said the boy's parents and sister escaped injury in the city of Mersin, on the edge of the earthquake zone, but are now spending most of their time outside in cold temperatures because they're afraid of aftershocks and cannot work.

"It's a little bit scary there after the earthquake. They have no power. They are out on the street," Wafeek, 22, told CBC News on Friday.

He said he reassured Adnan that he would see his parents soon.

"We told him, 'They are alright. They are coming. On the way.'"

Adnan, a Grade 5 student in Saskatoon, was forced apart from his parents by the Syrian conflict in 2017. He spent several years in Malaysia with his grandmother and uncle until family in Saskatoon privately sponsored them to come to Canada. They joined 14 other family members in the prairie city.

Meanwhile, Adnan's parents Mohammed Kharsa and Yasmine Sheikho fled to Turkey — without passports or much money — to avoid being recruited by the army.