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Afra
Mustafa is Nuri’s cousin who teaches him how to care for bees and invites him into a business partnership. After Mustafa’s mother died, the cousins lost touch for many years until fate—as Nuri’s mother claimed—brought them back together. Mustafa is married to Dahab, and his children are Firas and Aya. While living in Aleppo, Mustafa’s family, Nuri, Afra, and Sami regularly take meals together. Even in these happy flashbacks, Mustafa seems to sense that great loss is coming. An eccentric professor at the University of Damascus, he is prone to melancholic ruminations. Mustafa sends Dahab and Aya to England long before he and Firas leave Syria, and Firas is murdered. Broken by his son’s death, Mustafa kills some soldiers and flees the country, leaving a note behind for Nuri. Upon arriving in the UK, Mustafa adopts a colony of bees and writes to tell Nuri he is waiting for him, so they can pick up where they left off. Through emailed updates, Mustafa becomes a representation of hope for Nuri. Although the novel ends with the cousins’ reunion, Mustafa’s hopefulness contains a note of desperation that tells Nuri the losses they have sustained weigh heavily on him.
Mustafa Quotes in The Beekeeper of Aleppo
The The Beekeeper of Aleppo quotes below are all either spoken by Mustafa or refer to Mustafa. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 1 Quotes
And for a while on those evenings […] we were still happy. Life was close enough to normal for us to forget our doubts, or at least to keep them locked away somewhere in the dark recesses of our minds while we made plans for the future.
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This passage is taken from the end of Nuri’s recollections of his life before the Syrian Civil War escalated. Here, he describes the evenings on which he, Afra, and Sami would have dinner with Mustafa, Dahab, Aya, and Firas. Although Nuri portrays these dinners as his last purely happy memories of Aleppo, he also remembers how Mustafa seemed to sense that tragedy was imminent, becoming melancholic after their meal and worrying about the growing civil unrest. In this way, the knowledge of what was coming taints these memories, diminishing the joy of remembrance because they include so many things that Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Mo
Chapter 4 Quotes
People are not like bees. We do not work together, we have no real sense of a greater good—I’ve come to realize this now.
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This passage comes from one of Mustafa’s early emails to Nuri, which he reads in Istanbul. This statement is made in reference to the smugglers he has met on his journey, emphasizing that they will try to take advantage of Nuri by overcharging him for their services. In Nuri’s previous memories, Mustafa was as enamored with the bees as he was, thinking of their society as idyllic and peaceful. His conviction that “People are not like bees” indicates a devastating loss of faith in humanity brought about by his travels as a refugee. According to Mustafa, humans do not have Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur e
Chapter 9 Quotes
But in the days and weeks that followed I saw him become smaller, and less urgent, less purposeful in his actions, as he cut or sewed or measured. As if he had lost the fire that had driven him. And I thought in that moment, lying there looking up at the Athenian sky, that if I had sacrificed my father’s happiness to become a beekeeper, then I had to find a way to make it to Mustafa.
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This quote occurs in a flashback Nuri has while staying in Pedion tou Areos, remembering the moment he told his father he wanted to be a beekeeper. Though Nuri’s parents only appear a few times in the novel, this memory of Nuri’s father is a driving force behind his desire to reunite with Mustafa. Remembering the way his father seemed to shrink after Nuri told him he would not take over the family business brings up intense feelings of guilt, despite his lack of regret for choosing beekeeping. That Nuri feels he “sacrificed [his] father’s happiness” to follow his dream Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectetur et. Dicta impedit ut. Ducimus possimus quo. Non inventore in. Eligendi atque placeat. Molestiae earum eum. Libero sit beatae. At a deserunt. Sint aperiam consequatur. Minima porro perferendis. Sit neque odit. Tenetur qui dignissimos. Qui et ut. Voluptate labore corporis. Hic tempore laborum. Nisi
Chapter 14 Quotes
He speaks with the enthusiasm of a child again, but can detect an undertone of desperation. I know him, and what he is really saying is this: this is how the story must end; our hearts can bear no more loss.
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He wants to give me something to hope for, I can tell. Mustafa has always given me something to hope for.
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Mustafa arrives at the bed and breakfast and emotionally reunites with Nuri. He talks at length about beekeeping in Britain, about all the things he and Nuri and Afra will do once they join Mustafa in the north of England. Though the old Mustafa was often just as enthusiastic as the one standing in front of him, Nuri can tell his cousin, like himself, has been changed by the trauma of fleeing Syria. The desperation in Mustafa’s voice indicates to Nuri that his cousin is willing a happy ending into existence, that he cannot conceivably bear any more loss. In Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia. Provident expedita delectus. Occaecati ea suscipit. Optio ut iste. Voluptas aut occaecati. Accusantium recusandae voluptates. Explicabo minus tempore. Nostrum dolor asperiores. Ut aliquam officiis. Unde enim nesciunt. Commodi necessitatibus voluptas. Accusamus eaque omnis. Velit eaque error. Possimus corrupti soluta. Qui aut a. Rerum voluptas debitis. Voluptatem accusantium est. Mollitia eaque ipsa. Perferendis consectet
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Mustafa Character Timeline in The Beekeeper of Aleppo
The timeline below shows where the character Mustafa appears in The Beekeeper of Aleppo. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 1
Mustafa, Nuri’s cousin, introduces him to beekeeping. A professor at Damascus University, Mustafa hires Nuri to...
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On Saturdays, Nuri’s family has dinner with Mustafa’s family. Mustafa’s wife, Dahab, cooks with him, though Mustafa is too slow for her liking....
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Mustafa has two children, Firas and Aya. He is often frustrated with Firas for preferring computer...
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As civil unrest worsens, Mustafa sends Dahab and Aya away to England to keep them safe. He and Firas stay...
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After the bees die, Mustafa is ready to leave Aleppo, but Firas goes missing. The family waits for him, Mustafa...
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Chapter 2
Nuri uses the computer in the living room to check for messages from Mustafa. Mustafa left Syria before Nuri and Afra and is waiting for them in the north...
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In the flashback, Nuri visits Mustafa’s house in Aleppo only to find him gone. Mustafa left behind a photo of the...
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Chapter 3
...garden and helps Afra get ready for bed. She asks if he has heard from Mustafa, but he is distracted by a phantom whistling sound. He tries to entice Afra into...
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...the war. He imagines the apiaries and the bees in their hives, and he remembers Mustafa dipping his finger into the honey and tasting it. He remembers coming home to Sami...
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Chapter 4
...Nuri comes across an Internet café and checks his email to find several messages from Mustafa. His cousin has spent time in camps in Bulgaria, Serbia, and Germany. Regarding smugglers, Mustafa...
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Nuri remembers the first time Mustafa took him to see the bees’ apiaries, how he told him to relax and become...
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Chapter 5
...dangers of accepting refugees, and Nuri turns the TV off. He thinks of writing to Mustafa about how unwell he feels, how bereft of dreams he is. Instead, he helps the...
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Chapter 7
...it to Mohammed. He finds an Internet café and checks his email for word from Mustafa. His cousin has sent several messages.
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The first email is actually from Dahab, who was checking Mustafa’s messages while he was in France. Dahab is very happy to hear from Nuri; she...
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Mustafa saying Nuri is like a brother to him brings back a memory of Mustafa’s father’s...
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Chapter 8
...a Chinese word on it, “Yuanfen,” meaning fate. This reminds Nuri of how he met Mustafa. Though they were cousins, the families lost touch after Mustafa’s mother died. One day, Nuri...
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...her fan in recognition of her sister’s son. This was the beginning of Nuri and Mustafa’s friendship, which led to his beekeeping career and changed his life. Nuri attributes this chance...
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Chapter 9
...hovering nearby. Nuri asks Nadim to use his cell phone and finds two emails from Mustafa. He tells Nuri he has put an ad on Facebook to see if anyone has...
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...it here, that something is wrong. Afra agrees, which comforts him. He tells her about Mustafa and assures her they will find him.
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At night, Nuri imagines the crickets are bees. He realizes he forgot to respond to Mustafa and thinks of his mother’s silk fan. She supported him when he decided to become...
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Chapter 10
...a murderer. Feeling his panic rising, Nuri tries to focus on Afra and thoughts of Mustafa’s bees.
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Chapter 11
In Mustafa’s latest email, he tells Nuri that he has met a local beekeeper who is helping...
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Chapter 12
...Afra is still weeping, holding the marble. She asks Nuri if he has heard from Mustafa, since he is the reason they came to England. She tells Nuri he is lost...
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Mustafa’s latest message asks if Nuri has made it out of Athens. He is giving beekeeping...
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Chapter 13
...fingers as she tells Nuri how scared she was, how he seems to have forgotten Mustafa and the bees, as if he is lost or a different person. She tells him...
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...been discovered. Nuri and Afra board the plane and it takes off, bound for England, Mustafa, and—Afra hopes aloud—safety.
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Chapter 14
...and Nuri hears someone say his full name. He goes down the stairs and sees Mustafa at the door. A surge of memories overpowers him, all the time he and Mustafa...
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Mustafa and Nuri sit in the living room, struggling to find words. Nuri asks about the...
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Nuri watches Afra and Mustafa, thinking of Mohammed, the boy he created to fill the void Sami left. Mustafa says...
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