Bana al Abed became known to the world as a seven-year-old Syrian girl living in besieged eastern Aleppo, whose Twitter account — managed with her mother Fatemah — brought the reality of the Syrian civil war to global attention in 2016. Her tweets, describing life under bombardment, were read by millions around the world.
In a series of extraordinary messages posted as airstrikes fell around her home, Bana shared the terror and suffering of civilian life in a war zone with a directness and humanity that no journalist could replicate. Her account reached half a million followers and was praised by world leaders including the UN Secretary General.
She and her family eventually escaped from Aleppo and she has since become a prominent voice for peace, meeting world leaders and publishing a memoir. She is a remarkable example of a child using the tools of the modern world to speak truth to power in a time of crisis.