Portsmouth man to trek 50km a day in gruelling walk to Iraq over four months to highlight plight of refugees who flee to UK

Mitchell Jones, 27, and his friend George Sweeney from Newport, Wales, have set off on a 50km-a-day expedition to Iraq mostly on foot and with a maximum £4 daily expenditure in a bid to raise £10,000.

The determined duo are taking on the challenge for specialist children’s charity War Child to highlight the plight of refugees who attempt the hazardous walk to the UK from the Middle East.

The pair set off on Wednesday from London to Lille on the Eurostar before they will begin their quest in France.

Then they will head through Belgium, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Serbia, Bulgaria and Turkey before finally entering Iraq via its northern border into the region of Kurdistan before finishing in the city of Irbil. The journey mirrors the arduous route many refugees fleeing to the UK for safety take but in reverse.

Mitch said: ‘Here in the UK there is no real daily mortal risk - we have free access to education and all in public life.

‘It feels an outrage to me that so many people around the world, particularly in war-torn countries, do not have what we can too easily take for granted here.

‘We all know that thousands of refugees flee the middle eastern region every year - many making the journey to Europe by foot. We cannot even begin to imagine the terrors that force families to split up and flee, especially when the journey can seem equally as hazardous.

‘That is why we want to walk the route, albeit in the opposite direction, that many refugees come through. We want to bring more awareness to the danger of these journeys, by trying to stick to the routes these people take and maintaining a level of self-sufficiency, just as they have to.’

Mitch and George plan to wild camp as much as possible within fields and forests and make the most of limited rations. With only the clothes on their backs, a tent and some basic cooking equipment, their aim is to live off £3-4 a day to cover food and water.

They will also highlight their journey by vlogging and blogging to raise awareness of the difficulties faced by refugees making the journey across Europe by foot.

On choosing War Child as the charity to raise money for, Mitch said: ‘We want to raise money for War Child because the projects undertaken by them give young people an anchor of stability in an otherwise chaotic world.

‘Children are the victims of wars fought by adults and anything we can do to lessen the impact that war has on their lives is worth doing. We have set a fundraising target of £10,000 and will strive to hit that target.’

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Money raised during their journey will go towards funding War Child’s work in protecting, educating and standing up for the rights of children caught up in conflict around the world.

To donate go to www.justgiving.com/englandtoasia

Their journey can be followed on Instagram @englandtoasia.

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