Safet became a war refugee at the age of five in 1941 when Yugoslavia was invaded by Nazi Germany. His family escaped to Banja Luka, where he attended elementary school. After the war, the Isović family returned to Bileća. In his youth, Safet's family moved around Yugoslavia and lived in several cities, including Bileća, Banja Luka, Trebinje and Slavonski Brod.