On the 18th of April, the Syrian regime announced that Syria’s presidential elections will be held on the 26th of May and on 21st of April, Bashar al-Assad, has officially announced his candidacy. These elections, which certainly guarantee the continuation of al-Assad’s brutal autocracy, are set to take place in the midst of a perpetual violent conflict where the ruling regime is…
A new report by Amnesty International issued on March 23, 2021, documents the number of violations committed against Syrian refugees in Lebanon. A previous Human Rights Watch report estimated the true number of Syrians in Lebanon to be 1.5 million. The same report mentioned that seventy-four percent of Syrians in Lebanon lack legal residency and risk detention for unlawful presence in Lebanon….
On Tuesday, 16 March 2021, the Syrian British Council and the Syria Relief hosted a Panel discussion to commemorate the 10the anniversary of the Syrian revolution. Key speakers of the event were the Minister for the Middle East & North Africa in the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, Labour MP and Shadow Minister for Culture & Progressive, Alison McGovern, Labour MP and…
Happy International Women’s Day! On this occasion, we, in the Syrian British Council, are very proud to have three wonderful women on our Board and we take this opportunity to recall some of what these pioneering women have achieved. Samera Zeitoun Tayan: As a co-founder of Souriat Across Borders (SAB), Samera, with other Syrian ladies, dedicated her time since the start of…
One of the recommendations of the Syrian British Council (SBC) regarding the Syrian elections appears in the speech of the UK representative in New York In the past two months, SBC raised the issue of the Syrian elections with decision-makers in the UK. In November 2020, SBC met with shadow ministers from the opposition, including the Shadow Minister of Foreign Affairs and…
On 9 December members of the Syrian British Council attended a meeting with the former UK Syria Envoy, Dr Longden, his successor Mr Hargreaves and senior members of the Syria FCDO team. The meeting discussed the UK’s priorities in Syria.
On Monday, 7th of December. SBC’s Amina Khoulani, Ibrahim Olabi, and Waad Alkateab met with Minister for Middle East & North Africa in the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, James Cleverly. The meeting discussed a number of UK priorities in Syria, including support for the release of detainees and need for accountability. Mr Cleverly confirmed that the UK stands with Syrians, will…
On Thursday, 26 of Nov. SBC’s Amina Khoulani, Abdulkareem Ekzayez, Ibrahim Olabi, Waad Alkateab and Douna H Ahmed met with Labor Front Bench Shadow Foreign Secretary Lisa Nandy, Shadow Minister for International Development Anna McMorrin, Shadow Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Minister for the Middle East and North Africa Wayne David. The meeting was facilitated by the Labour Campaign for International Development. The…
The Syrian British Council (SBC) strongly condemns the decree signed by Prime Minister Hussein Arnous on July 8th that necessitates returning Syrians exchange $100 or other Central Bank approved hard currencies into Syrian Lira. Citizens exchanged money loses about half of its value in accordance with customs and aviation authorities’ rates, which is directly pocketed by the regime. The decree only exempts…