Syria
The uprising in Syria began in January 2011 following similar demonstrations and protests across the Arab world, collectively known as the Arab Spring. Public demonstrations demanding an end to nearly five decades of Ba’ath Party rule and the resignation of President al-Assad developed into a nationwide uprising and were met with violent responses from the Syrian Army.
The conflict is now entering its third year. According to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, more than 80,000 people have been killed as a result of battles between government forces and the opposition, including many thousands of civilians. Both sides have been accused of human rights abuses. There are numerous claims of torture and there is evidence that massacres have been perpetrated. Whole villages and towns lie in ruins. Hospitals and medical centres have been destroyed and those still standing lack medical supplies to treat the wounded and the sick. The conflict has brought the Syrian economy to a virtual standstill. In many areas, food and fuel for heating are hard to come by. Electricity and water supplies work intermittently.
In Syria, more than 6.8 million people are vulnerable and in urgent need of assistance - of which 4.25 million are internally displaced. While the battles for the strategically important cities of Aleppo, Homs and Damascus intensify, more and more people are seeking refuge beyond the borders of Syria. According to the United Nations, more than 1.5 million Syrians have fled to the neighboring countries of Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq. The United Nations estimates that nearly half of refugees registered to date are children. The existing refugee camps cannot accommodate the growing number of people and there are not sufficient supplies. More and more families are sheltering within the surrounding communities and in emergency shelters in border regions.
Updated May 2013
Projects
Only one of the project descriptions below is currently available in English. One of the projects has been completed:
