After traveling 5,000 miles across Europe last year to bring attention to the plight of refugees, Little Amal, a giant puppet of a 10-year-old Syrian girl, traveled to Poland to meet children who fled the war in Ukraine.

Amal became an international symbol of displacement and loss – but also of compassion and generosity – when, with a team of puppeteers and support workers, she marched from Gaziantep near the Turkish-Syrian border to Manchester between July and october.

This week, the 3.5-meter puppet will travel to the Polish cities of Lublin and Krakow to meet Ukrainian refugee children and families who have left their homes since Russia launched its military offensive on February 20.

Amir Nizar Zuabi, the artistic director of The Walk, Amal’s trans-European journey, said: “At a time of unprecedented global change, Amal’s journeys transcend borders, politics and language to tell a new story of shared humanity – and to ensure the world does not forget the millions of children displaced, each with their own potential to improve the communities in which, as we hope, they will find refuge.

The Polish trip, which includes a visit to Przemyśl, a town close to the border with Ukraine, is at the invitation of the mayors of Lublin and Krakow and the Ukrainian Embassy in Poland. Amal and her crew took with them aids and supplies for the needs of young children.

Alexander Sola, the The vice-president of the Folkowisko Foundation, which is supporting the trip, said: “We hope that Amal will draw the world’s attention to the refugee crisis that Europe has not experienced since the end of the Second World War. world. Amal symbolizes the millions of refugees who have been forced from their homes.

Amal, whose name means hope in Arabic, was created by Handspring, the company that made War Horse’s equine puppets. Three puppeteers are needed to operate Amal.