Zalmaï: Silent Exodus

In early 2008, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees reported that an estimated 4.4 million Iraqis had been displaced from their homes as a result of the war. While nearly half were uprooted internally, the remaining citizens escaped to neighboring countries. "The New York Times" called the escalating crisis, "the largest exodus since the mass migrations associated with the creation of the state of Israel in 1948." Today, the situation of most refugees remains dire; months and years into forced flight, many are running out of money, food and the good will of their hosts. In "Silent Exodus," Kabul-born, Switzerland-based photographer Zalmaï chronicles the plight of Iraqi refugees in Syria, Jordan and Lebanon; over the course of several trips in 2007, he interviewed them, collected their individual stories and photographed them in their homes, where many remain in uncertainty. Although frequently harassed by neighbors, they are still afraid to return to Iraq, given the instability and violence that lingers there. Rarely told and under-reported, this is a human story which deserves a wider audience. Khaled Hosseini, author of "The Kite Runner" and "A Thousand Splendid Suns" contributes an introduction to the work.

Format: Paperback / softback
Number of pages: 96
Publication date: 2008-10-01
Measurements: 6.3 x 7.86 x 0.37 inches
ISBN: 9781597110778

Zalma&#xef was born in Kabul, Afghanistanb in 1964; his family settled in Lausanne, Switzerland, where he studied at the School of Creative Photography and at the Center of Professional Education in Photography, Yverdon. He has won several national and international prizes, including the World Press Joop Swart masterclass and the Photo District News annual award for documentary photography. Zalma&#xef is a member of Assocation Focale, a cooperative of photographers based in Nyon, Switzerland. He has published four other monographs including Dread and Dreams (Daylight, 2016) and Reporters Without Borders (Favre, 2009).
Khaled Hosseini was born in Kabul, Afghanistan, and moved to the United States in 1980. His first novel, “The Kite Runner”, was an international bestseller, published in forty countries. In 2006 he was named a U.S. envoy to UNHCR, The United Nations Refugee Agency. He lives in northern California.