Having been taught to laugh at the sound of bombs, a three-year-old Syrian girl has started a new life with her family in Turkey.

Key points: Salwa imagined children's fireworks instead of air strikes to overcome fear

Salwa imagined children's fireworks instead of air strikes to overcome fear Turkish media said her family is now based at a refugee camp in south-west Turkey

Turkish media said her family is now based at a refugee camp in south-west Turkey Almost 1 million people have fled Syria over the past three months

Salwa captured the world's imagination after a video on social media last month showed her father Abdullah Mohammad devising a unique game to help her cope with the sound of air strikes near their home in Idlib.

Rather than be afraid, she was encouraged to chuckle when she heard explosions that were likened to the sounds of fireworks being let off by children.

A week after the touching video was released, the Turkish Government helped Salwa and her parents cross the border on February 25.

Turkey's Anadolu Agency reported that they arrived at the Cilvegozu border gate, with Salwa blowing kisses after she left Syria for the first time.

Abdullah Mohammed taught his daughter Salwa to laugh rather than cry when she heard the sound of nearby bombs. ( AP: Ghaith Alsayed )

They were taken to the Reyhanli refugee camp in southern Turkey, relieved to have escaped the dangers of their homeland.

In the north-west of Syria, the city of Idlib is the last major rebel-held stronghold in Syria.

Nine years of war has killed hundreds of thousands and displaced millions, including Salwa's family.

The Syrian army's clashes with rebels near Idlib have forced almost 1 million people to flee over the past three months. ( Reuters )



Mr Mohammad came up with the idea of using the shared memory of children's fireworks as a distraction after recalling a celebration during Eid al-Fitr, the three-day Muslim holiday that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

As a one-year-old, Salwa was initially alarmed to hear the Eid fireworks outside their house.

"She was frightened, but I took her out and showed her that children were playing and laughing … she was convinced," Mr Mohammad said.

Salwa hopes to have more play time with her father after safely settling in a refugee camp in southern Turkey. ( AP: Ghaith Alsayed )

In the video last month, Mr Mohammad reminded Salwa of the children's fireworks to ease her fears of the sounds of nearby fighting between rebels and government forces.

"Is that a plane or a shell?" he asks his daughter.

"A shell, and when it falls, we will laugh!" she replies.

The United Nations has said the conflict in Syria was having "catastrophic" humanitarian consequences, with schools and hospitals destroyed.

Reuters/AP