Rather than moving to the UK as a refugee from Somalia with his parents as previously claimed, Farah said he came from Djibouti aged eight or nine with a woman he had never met, was given a false identity, and then made to look after another family’s children
Mo Farah
Olympic great Mo Farah won praise from across Britain’s political spectrum on Tuesday after the shock revelation that he was illegally trafficked as a child to the country and forced to work in domestic servitude.
ADVERTISEMENT
The 39-year-old distance runner, one of Britain’s best-loved and most successful athletes, told a BBC documentary that his real name is Hussein Abdi Kahin. Rather than moving to the UK as a refugee from Somalia with his parents as previously claimed, Farah said he came from Djibouti aged eight or nine with a woman he had never met, was given a false identity, and then made to look after another family’s children.
Also Read: Shuttlers MR Arjun, Dhruv Kapila sail into pre-quarters
Finance minister and Conservative leadership candidate Nadhim Zahawi said Farah remained “truly inspirational.” Zahawi, whose Kurdish family fled Iraq for Britain when he was 11, told BBC TV that hearing Farah reveal his life story made him feel “heartbroken, painful.” Lisa Nandy, a senior member of the opposition Labour party, said Farah’s decision to speak out could be a “gamechanger” for other victims of trafficking.
London’s Labour mayor Sadiq Khan said: “Everything Sir Mo has survived proves he’s not only one of our greatest Olympians but a truly great Briton.”
This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever