Alan Karam was born in Sulaimaniyah, Kurdistan, in 1981, during the Iran-Iraq War, and grew up at a time of enormous political unrest and exile. Alan and his family experienced unrelenting hurdles from an early age due to their refusal to associate with Saddam Hussein’s dictatorship, which resulted in isolation, danger, and frequent change.

Raids and constant anxiety marked his early years, and after moving to Sarchinar in 1986, his living conditions grew increasingly confined and unpleasant. Despite the terrible reality of their situation, Alan assumed duties much greater than theirs after their father vanished under mysterious circumstances, becoming the de facto “man of the house.”