When a country is in the midst of being torn apart by a civil war, the things we take for granted are sometimes the hardest items to get.

Jeedley Haji Aden is the mother of a disabled girl, and she has great difficulty taking her from place to place in the city of Mogadishu. Somalia's capital is currently the scene of constant fighting between a US-backed Somali army and rebel religious forces.

"My daughter has never had the chance to walk or stand on her feet," said Jeedley. "She was born with this disability."

Hawo is 15 years old now, and her mother calls her neighbors for help whenever she wants to move her daughter from out of the house. Sometimes she has to physically to drag her, when there is no one around to help her.

"The worst moment is when she is sick, and I have to carry her to the toilet, or to the hospital," Jeedley explained. "Of course, my neighbours are helpful and I am grateful to them. But there are times when they get tired of my endless yelling for help."

Jeedley is a mother of five children in all, including Hawo. Their father died four years ago and now the family lives in one of Mogadishu's camps for internally displaced persons, where they subsisted on very little.

Her fortunes soon took a turn for the better.

"All my dismay suddenly disappeared when I visited the Muslim Aid office and explained the situation my daughter was in," said Jeedley. "We were given the greatest present, a wheelchair! It might seem to be a simple thing to you, but it is a great relief to my daughter and I, Alhamdulillah."

Ahmed Muhummed, the country director of Muslim Aid Somalia, said that it was the least the UK-based relief agency could do for Jeedley.

"She is a good woman who has suffered a lot of hardships. I am very happy that we were in a position to assist her in this way."

Jeedley was ecstatic about the assistance she received from Muslim Aid.

"My daughter is independent now, and is able to visit even the nearby houses. Do you know what makes me happy? It is when a neighbour tells me that my daughter visited them at their house."

(ENDS)