Jordan: too young to be a bride
Omaima Hoshan is a young, ambitious and brave teenage girl. She speaks up for women's right to education and discourages early marriage. She runs painting and acting classes to teach young girls and parents about underage marriage.
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"When I got to sixth grade [in 2013], I started hearing about girls as young as 12 or 13 getting married. They would come to the school to say goodbye. I remember thinking they were making a big mistake, even before I knew the facts."
Learn more about Omaima on UNHCR Tracks
Why early marriage is growing among refugees
Early marriage is a cultural tradition in some parts of Syria, including rural areas of Dara'a province, where most of the refugees in Za'atari camp come from. Several factors have made it more common among Syrian refugees in Jordan.
These include harder living conditions and the insecure finances of some families. They push families to marry off their daughters to ease their financial burden.
In Syria before the war, on average 13 per cent of all marriages involved someone under 18. Among Syrian refugees in Jordan, this rate had risen to 32 per cent by the first quarter of 2014.
How UNHCR responds
UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, works with the local Shari'a judge in Za'atari camp. It offers early marriage counselling to everyone who plans to marry before turning 18. The counselling raises awareness of the risks of early marriage, including the health dangers of early pregnancy.
If there is any evidence that the child is under 15, or that the marriage is forced, UNHCR gives families in-depth counselling on the legal, health and psychological consequences. It does this together with the government's Family Protection Unit, which will seek to stop such marriages.