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Louder Than Bombs: Teenage photographer powerfully documents the war in Syria

When Turkish photographer Furkan Temir was just a teenager, he saw a huge influx of Kurdish people, fleeing civil war in neighbouring Syria. Instead of going to school one day, his curiosity forced him to pick up his camera and sleeping bag, and travel to the northern Syrian border town of Kobani where the American-led coalition had joined forces with Kurdish fighters to battle Islamic State.

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Large crowd of Syrian Kurdish refugees gathered at the border, with aid vehicles visible in the background, documented by photographer Furkan Temir

The haunting things that he witnessed during that forbidden trip over many months form the series, Louder Than Bombs – his photo-journalism account of the impact of ISIS's unexpected siege of Kobani and the ensuing effort to retake the city.

Now aged 21, Furkan told the New York Times: "Millions of refugees were coming to my country and leaving their homes and escaping. As an instinct I couldn’t stay or sit down at home to wait for something to happen. I just really felt the urge to be there."

Born in a small town in eastern Turkey in 1995, Furkan spent his childhood in Sivas and Bursa, and later earned a scholarship at Sehir University in Istanbul. But instead of attending school, he found himself photographing in Iraq and along the Syrian border. He later transferred to another learning facility and continued his photo-journalism while studying part-time. Discover more of his work at www.furkantemir.com.

Via direct submission | All images courtesy of Furkan Temir

A figure with a white cloth covering their head stands amid smoke and debris, surrounded by onlookers in a war-torn area
Thick black smoke billows across a devastated landscape with figures visible through a white gap in the centre during conflict in Kobani, Syria
Black and white photograph of a distressed child crouched against a brick wall surrounded by adults' hands offering comfort during the conflict in Syria
A man carries a large bundle of fabric or clothing above his head whilst standing between metal barriers in a refugee camp
A destroyed building with its upper storey collapsed inward stands on a rubble-strewn street in war-torn Kobani, Syria, lined with other damaged structures
Large crowd of people gathered around a coffin during a funeral ceremony in Syria, documented by photographer Furkan Temir
A damaged white room with bullet holes and shrapnel marks in the walls, a black plastic bag and rubble piled in the corner, electrical outlets visible on the wall
Huddled figures, including children, sit beneath makeshift fabric shelters in a black and white photograph documenting displacement in Kobani during the Syrian conflict
People navigate through rubble and debris in a devastated courtyard surrounded by concrete blast walls and a partially destroyed building in Kobani, Syria
A figure crouches through a large jagged hole blasted through a concrete wall in war-damaged Kobani, Syria
Woman sits amongst displaced belongings and a portable air conditioning unit in a refugee camp, with caged areas visible behind wire fencing
A figure in black clothing stands alone against a weathered concrete wall in front of a damaged building in Kobani, Syria
A bed with white and black metal frame stands in a courtyard where laundry hangs on lines between makeshift shelters, documenting displacement during the Syrian conflict
Two figures walk along a dirt path between a fenced enclosure and tented refugee camp structures under an overcast sky in Kobani, Syria
Woman holding a young child amid a refugee camp, with other displaced people and vehicles visible in the background during the Syrian conflict
A woman in dark clothing stands outside a white tent in a refugee camp, with multiple shelters and tents visible along a dusty street
Large crowd of Kurdish refugees wearing traditional white headscarves and holding flags at a gathering near the Syrian border
Rubble-strewn landscape of destroyed buildings in Kobani, Syria, with a figure among the ruins in the foreground
Two women with long dark hair walk through a sunlit wheat field in black and white
A white flag bearing a portrait flutters on a pole in a barren, mountainous landscape during the conflict in Kobani, Syria
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