A Profoundly Powerful Video That Shows War Through a Child's Eyes

It might feel like Syria is halfway around the world from where you stand right now, but a new video is bringing the country's humanitarian crisis home in a brutally powerful way. In a new video, a little girl is seen blowing out birthday candles, surrounded by joyous family members. She plays dress-up in her London home, jokes around in the backseat of a car, and looks to be a happy-go-lucky 9-year-old. But over the next 90 seconds — shown as a second-a-day-type video — conflict breaks out around her, and the images grow haunting and dark as her life descends into disarray and she ends up as a homeless refugee. It closes with message "just because it isn't happening here, doesn't mean it isn't happening."

The Save the Children video, timed to coincide with the third anniversary of the Syrian civil war, is intended to convey the horror children are living through in Syria right now and gather support for the humanitarian efforts helping the 5 million Syrian children suffering there. The organization hopes to raise $15,000 for the program.