WHEN the national debate turns to the merits of resettling refugees seeking asylum in the UK, as so often it has done in the Brexit-riven last few years, it is worth reminding ourselves of the people at the heart of the issue.

People like sisters Rabiaa and Sabah All Hassoun. They fled Syria after their home in the city of Homs was bombed during the bitter civil war which shows no sign of ending. Their sister Hasna lost her children and both of her legs during a shell attack.

The sisters are together in Durham, after being among the first to be resettled in the city as part of the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme, but the rest of their family is scattered across Syria, Lebanon, the UK and France.

What these remarkable young women have lived through is unimaginable to those lucky enough to live and work in relatively safe, stable western countries.

Almost two years after their arrival in Durham, all three are studying at New College Durham, and are giving something back to the charity which supported them, Durham City of Sanctuary, by becoming trustees.

Sabah says: “When we go back to our area it’s like coming to my village – it feels like home now.”

Telling their stories is vital when so much misinformation is spread about refugees and their reasons for leaving their home countries.

That the North-East has so quickly become a proper home for these sisters should be a real source of pride to the region.