Amman/Geneva (4 September 2015) - The death of Alan, Ghalib and Rehanna Kurdi in the sea between Turkey and Greece this week is the latest, most visible tragedy of a crisis that has caused millions of individual tragedies over the last four years.
“The shock and outrage we all felt seeing the image of this child must be turned into swift political action. The magnitude of the Syrian disaster may be beyond comprehension, but now there is no excuse for looking away. It shouldn’t take a tragedy such as this to shift policy, but if it does, at least some sense will have come out of it” says Wolfgang Jamann, Secretary General/CEO of CARE international.
CARE has called since 2014 for concrete commitments to resettling the most vulnerable five percent of the over four million who have fled the horrendous violence in Syria, while also providing appropriate levels of assistance to the countries that still host over 90 percent of Syrian refugees. This must involve substantially more aid, both through humanitarian organisations and bilaterally.
While supporting those displaced by the violence, new diplomatic efforts must be launched both to ensure the enforcement of resolutions that the UN Security Council has already passed calling for political resolutions to the conflicts in the region, the protection of civilians and access for humanitarian aid. This requires serious political action by the Security Council, including China and Russia, and regional powers.
CARE welcomes the developing shifts in policy from European governments, but these are just a start.
CARE’s provision of life-saving services to Syrian refugees and host communities in Jordan, Lebanon Egypt, Turkey and Yemen and to people affected by the crisis in Syria has reached more than a million people. CARE is currently providing food, water and other support to refugees arriving in Serbia.
Media Contacts
Mary Kate MacIsaac, Regional Syria Response Communications Coordinator (Amman): [email protected] +962 79 711 7414
Anders Nordstoga, CARE International Media and Communications Coordinator (Oslo): [email protected] +47 908 42 458