Syrian refugees welcomed in recession-hit Brazil but face tough times

RIO DE JANEIRO (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - When Hanan Dacka fled the civil war in Syria with her family to start a new life in Brazil, the idea that she might one day carry the Olympic torch was beyond the stretch of anyone's imagination.

At first, she struggled to settle into school, not knowing how to speak Portuguese. Her family lived, and still lives, in a cramped one-bedroom apartment in Sمo Paulo. Her brother works seven days a week in a shop.