What It's Like To Be a War Refugee | Zarlasht Halaimzai | TED

Summary

Zarlasht Halaimzai describes how growing up in Afghanistan during ongoing war shaped her body and mind, leaving her with a lasting sense of danger. As a child, she vividly recalls rockets and explosions that forced her family to huddle in a back room. She also remembers traveling through landmined roads and living in constant fear—not only for her own safety, but for relatives still in Kabul. After the Taliban took over in 1996, her family could no longer stay. Following four years in exile, they sought asylum in the UK.

She argues that the harm of war does not end at displacement. Even after escape, people often carry both “physical” and “psychic” consequences of chronic threat. Children report stomach pain and other aches linked to stress rather than hunger. People may experience nightmares, intense grief, anger, and depression/PTSD.

To show how widespread this reality is, she cites large-scale figures: 84 million forcibly displaced people—more than half of them women and children—along with hundreds of millions of children growing up where violence is normal. She also points to research connecting prolonged trauma and stress with serious illnesses such as cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. Additionally, she highlights the mental-health toll on soldiers after 9/11, including suicide rates that surpass combat deaths.

To address these harms, Halaimzai founded the “Refugee Trauma Initiative,” which aims to restore internal feelings of safety and connection through community healing rather than “pathologizing” normal reactions to violence. She describes group-based approaches using art, mindfulness, dance, and storytelling, grounded in curiosity, respect, and an understanding that trauma is shaped by systemic injustice and oppression—including colonial roots. A central message of her work is that safety is tied to belonging: feeling seen, worthy, and cared for within a supportive community.

She then expands the argument to the broader world, emphasizing that civilian suffering is the dominant cost of war. She questions the modern “war industry,” particularly in the post-9/11 era and amid drone warfare. She warns that as violence becomes automated, it risks dehumanizing life-and-death decisions by outsourcing extermination to machines rather than humans.

Her policy call is for governments—especially powerful states with influence—to stop investing in mass destruction, including weapons and drones, and instead prioritize health care and climate action. She frames civic action as voting against weapons of mass destruction and encourages local community support for refugees and displaced people.

Finally, she offers a personal example of “the simplest” antidote: kindness that builds safety and belonging. After arriving in London following hardship, a teacher in Central Asia brought supplies for her family, helped integrate her into a classroom, taught songs, and provided gifts. Halaimzai says that this brief period of connection created a lasting internal “blueprint” of joy and safety—helping her endure difficult days—and supporting her broader claim that community care can help people heal and begin new lives.

Presenters or contributors

• Zarlasht Halaimzai