El observador

 

Dear friends, I just returned to my home in Syria -- for the first time in 14 years. People were dancing in the streets, celebrating the fall of a tyrant. But amidst the relief, is a realisation that our horror is not over yet. Syrians are facing a severe humanitarian crisis of hunger, sanitation, and displacement. 13 million people are going hungry, and 7 million are living in camps or informal settlements. Many hospitals are just a pile of rubble -- and emergency teams are still uncovering new horrors in parts of Syria that were unreachable before. They are overwhelmed by the levels of suffering. Families need food, medical care, and shelter for an icy winter. And as thousands of displaced Syrians try to get home, local groups are racing to clear landmines and unexploded weapons. This is an urgent appeal to get life-saving aid and humanitarian support into Syria. International government aid is slow and often not enough -- but by pooling our donations from across the planet, Avaaz can get funding to trusted partners on the ground within days. And the more we raise, the more we can expand our campaigns and community-building projects across the region.

Over a decade of conflict has claimed the lives of at least 30,000 children across Syria. An additional seven million are now in urgent need of emergency aid, including medical care, food, clean drinking water, and safe shelter to endure the coming winter. For decades, Syria has only known destruction and terror. Assad’s regime used bombs and chemical weapons against us, killing half a million people. Countless families were forced to flee, leaving everything behind. The humanitarian needs today have never been greater. Nearly 70% of the population requires aid, and our refugee crisis is the largest in the world. Local groups urgently need funding to expand their reach, and they've come to Avaaz because they know our community can mobilise funds at lightning speed. If we raise enough, we could: Deliver emergency medical aid, food supplies, fuel, blankets, and shelter to thousands of displaced and critically injured; Fund a local and trusted team of civil defenders to scale up their operations across Syria -- removing rubble, clearing roads, de-mining and deactivating explosive devices to ensure the safe return of families and children; Provide shelter, livelihood and psycho-social support to former detainees who suffered torture and sexual violence at the hands of Assad regime; Support local truth and reconciliation groups as they document previous abuses, and mobilise communities to advocate for an inclusive Syria -- where rights of minorities and women are protected and enshrined into legislation; and, Continue to campaign on freedom, peace and security while helping grassroots efforts in Syria, Palestine, and Sudan to end the wars and guarantee rights and dignity for all.