Tony Alsabaa dreams of going home to Syria

Tony Alsabaa looks at a video game with his cousin Cristian Rebz, 8. Tony, a U.S. citizen, came to L.A. in August to receive medical treatment. His mother sent him alone after she was twice denied a visa.

Tony video chats with his mother, Maisaa Assaf, and baby sister back in Syria. It’s been seven months since he saw his parents, and he has never met 4-month-old Emily.

Tony Alsabaa at his aunt and uncle’s home in Santa Clarita with the back brace he must wear. Tony suffers from Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis, which leaves him sweating from high fevers and throbbing pain in his bones.

Fadaa Assaf gives Tony a dose of medicine while he plays with his cousin. “He either died in Syria or we sent him here,” his aunt said. “We don’t know what the future holds, but we need his parents to be here.”