As tensions grow between the United States, Israel, and Iran, international students at Northeastern University in Boston feel the weight of the war, physically and emotionally, with families in or near the countries at conflict.
While Northeastern’s Middle Eastern students are currently here in Boston, most of their families live in the Middle East. The long distance between students and their families during a time of uncertainty is leaving students distressed about the dangerous consequences of the war upon their countries and their families.
“I wish I could be there with them because at least if I’m in the same environment as them, I feel like I can understand more of the situation and I know what to expect, but being across the world from them, I don’t know what’s going to happen next,” said Ela Kendigelen, a first-year Northeastern student from Dubai.
The plane Kendigelen took on the way back home for spring break made an emergency landing in Malta due to Iran’s bombing of Dubai on Feb. 28. On a phone call with her mother, she found out about the bombings. Unable to return home to her parents for spring break, she returned to Boston physically safe but concerned and unsettled.
Kendigelen wasn’t the only Northeastern student who faced issues getting home for spring break. She later found out there were three other students on the plane with her who also went to Northeastern.
Farida AbouBakr, a first-year Northeastern student from Egypt, encountered challenges flying to Egypt during the same vacation week. The bombings in Dubai occurred during the flight she was taking to Egypt. At the end of Northeastern’s weeklong break, most flights were delayed coming back to Boston from the Middle East. The university’s administration was made aware of the delay and provided her support, with the option of online classes.
She is also worried about the long-term effects of the war. “How will the Middle East be perceived in America? Will I be able to get a job after this war? What is to come from the Middle East? Will my job opportunities be better off here,” said AbouBakr.
As a consequence of the war, Northeastern’s summer abroad program, Dialogue of Civilizations, faces transportation challenges, causing uncertainty, fear and frustration for students.
Myriam Benamor, a first-year Northeastern student from Oman, plans to participate in a Northeastern dialogue program in South Africa this summer. Benamor received a university email advising her to rebook flights to and from the program’s location that travel around certain areas, including her own country, Oman, and surrounding areas in the Middle East. Benamor is searching for flights, which are difficult to find to and from the Middle East.
As the spring semester ended, some international students from the areas in or near the conflict were struggling as they took final exams because of the emotional toll. These students were anxious about threats to their countries and their futures.
“It’s definitely been harder to focus on school especially, or focus on tasks or work or subjects that seem so disconnected because it just feels so surreal to be sitting in a university surrounded by people that have no idea what’s going on, when there’s a war happening in your home country,” said Eana Melki, a third-year Northeastern student from Lebanon.
Not only do students struggle with overarching thoughts of the war, they struggle to find comprehensive media coverage on the conflict from American news outlets. They sense a drastic difference and lack of perspectives from U.S. news outlets, especially as they hear daily accounts of devastation and destruction from their loved ones in the Middle East.
“In America, you’re getting certain news, and in Egypt you’re getting completely different news, it’s just stressful,” said AbouBakr.
Restrictions of on-the-ground journalism in the Middle East impact journalists’ ability to deliver real-time, impartial news developments in the region. “Oman got bombed in two places near exporting locations and people died, there was no U.S. media coverage of it,” said Benamor. Benomar receives information from her dad, who works as an engineer for oil and gas companies in the Middle East.
Israel’s military actions in southern Lebanon involving ground incursions and heavy airstrikes have heightened anxiety about the war, especially to Lebanese students at Northeastern. They find themselves unable to learn on news outlets what is occurring and hear of the humanitarian crisis in reports from their homes.
“On April 8, I think there were 100 casualties, Beirut was basically carpet bombed in so many different areas without any warning,” said Melki.
Melki relies on getting news alerts through a Whatsapp group that’s been posting since 2024. Adding to Melki’s concern is that her mother, who works at a hospital in Beirut, faces daily casualties and near constant danger.
Melki turns to her journalism classes as a way to cope and spread awareness about the war in Lebanon. She is starting a fundraiser, baking Lebanese sweets and donating 100% of the profits to Lebanese organizations to support them. She also finds comfort in other international students as they are open to talking about the war.
In America, some students are hesitant to discuss conflicts in the Middle East. “It’s just become such a polarized discussion here. I think there’s much more of a fear of discussing the topic in the U.S.,” said Melki. While Melki is physically removed from the conflict while studying in Boston, she feels it is her responsibility to do the most she can abroad.
“It’s my family, my friends, my people that are going through this. I think it’s only right that I am at least aware of the scale of what they’re going through,” said Melki.
As Northeastern’s academic year closes, many international students carry a burden far heavier than final exams. They carry constant fear for the safety of their families and the fate of their countries. Studying thousands of miles away, they remain academically focused during an ongoing war in or near their home countries. Despite the unknowns of the war, these students persist in doing everything in their power to help their home countries.
