Rebuilding Hope: A Year After the Syria-Turkey Earthquake

It has been a year since the devastating earthquakes struck Syria and Turkey, resulting in the loss of nearly 50,000 lives in Turkey and 6,000 in Syria. The majority of these casualties occurred in northwest Syria (NWS), a region already grappling with a decade-long humanitarian crisis that has affected 4.6 million people, including 2.9 million forcibly displaced individuals. Even after a year, Syrians continue to face the profound humanitarian consequences of the earthquakes, impacting crucial sectors such as shelter, food, health, education, housing, and access to life-saving assistance.

To shed light on the ongoing situation in Syria post-earthquakes and to discuss the deficiencies within the international humanitarian assistance framework, as well as the pivotal roles played by humanitarian actors both inside the country and in the diaspora, we cordially invite you to an in-person panel discussion titled: “Rebuilding Hope: A Year After the Syria-Turkey Earthquake”, organised by the Syrian British Consortium (SBC) and Hands Up Foundation, in collaboration with SOAS Syria Society.

The event will take place on Saturday 10 February from 17:00 – 18:30 (UK Time) at Djam Lecture Theatre (DLT), SOAS Main Building, Thornhaugh Street, WC1H 0XG.

For registration, please visit the link:

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/rebuilding-hope-a-year-after-the-syria-turkey-earthquake-tickets-811233510267

Meet the panel:

Monir Mustafa: a board member and the Vice President for Humanitarian Operations at Syria Civil Defence (The White Helmets). Previously, in 2015, Mr. Mustafa hold the position of the head of Syria Civil Defence directorate in Aleppo, leading many rescue operations that saved the lives of thousands of civilians.

Raya Homsi: A Syrian humanitarian and human rights activist with over 11 years of experience. Currently, Raya works with The Syria Campaign as Development and Impact Manager, supporting the White Helmets and other Syrian heroes on the ground responding to the devastating earthquake.

Rose Essam: the CEO of Hands Up Foundation, an innovative UK-based charity that funds health and education programmes in Syria and neighbouring countries and works directly with local communities while raising awareness about Syria’s humanitarian crisis abroad.

Fuad Sayed Issa: founder of Violet Organisation, a Syrian refugee-led charity that provides shelter and life-saving assistance to Syrians inside Syria and in Turkey. Violet was one of leading on-the-ground humanitarian organisation responding to the earthquakes.

Dr. Yasmine Nahlawi (Facilitator): the lead investigator at the Syrian British Consortium (SBC). Dr. Yasmine holds a PhD in Public International Law and an LLM in International Legal Studies from Newcastle University, as well as a BSc in Political Science from Eastern Michigan University.