Rethink Rebuild Society joined other British Syrian groups in issuing a statement condemning the alarming situation in Madaya. After stressing the repeated violations that the Assad regime has committed towards binding Security Council resolutions, we called upon the UK to help with civilian protection, namely in conducting food aid drops.
That's Manchester TV invited us on 7 January for an in-depth interview on the work that we do as an organisation. We spoke about some of the different aspects of our work and highlighted some of the interesting and hugely important campaigns that we are running.
Local journalist Ian O'Brien has written an article on his page regarding our protest to the US's changes to its visa waiver programme.
We were visited by a journalist from Mancunian Matters who wanted to learn more about the experience of Syrian refugees in settling to the UK.
A group of ten to twenty Syrian refugees, organised by Manchester-based advocacy and community group Rethink Rebuild Society, are headed to Mytmolmroyd on Friday 1 January around 11 am to help with flood efforts. Read more for the full Story.
Nine Syrian refugees in Manchester devoted their time on 29 December to help with flood prevention efforts in Littleborough near Rochdale. Wearing their Rethink Rebuild Society vests, they shovelled sand into sandbags which were then taken by local families to be used to protect their homes. Their involvement has been reported in the press.
RR hosted a meeting for representatives of Syrian groups across the UK. This was a critical meeting as we discussed collective lobbying and messaging that will help us make our impact stronger on the British landscape. Participants included:
-Kurds House
-Peace and Justice for Syria
-Rethink Rebuild Society
-Syria Solidarity Movement
RR Society organised a social gathering for the Syrian community in Manchester on 25 December 2015. About 150 Syrians gathered to socialise and enjoy their time together. Children also enjoyed their time watching movies, playing video games and running around.
The US has announced changes to its visa waiver program which allows British nationals, as well as the nationals of 38 other countries, to travel to the US without a visa.
A group of British Syrian community groups have issued a press release following Russia's indiscriminate assault on civilian areas in Idlib on 20 December 2015. We stressed that Russia's actions, instead of combating ISIL and working towards a political solution, are instead flaming the conflict.