The  Foundation Beyond Belief has launched an urgent fund drive in response to the worsening Syrian refugee crisis.

FBB explains:

Our staff evaluated several charities working to aid Syrian refugees and selected International Rescue Committee as the beneficiary of our crisis response drive. The IRC is working in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, and Iraq to provide the following assistance:

• In Syria, more than 700,000 vulnerable people have been served to date with medical and emergency supplies. The IRC’s Emergency Response Team is at work in camps for the displaced, providing clean water and sanitation, education to primary students, and emergency supplies to families.  
• In Jordan, the IRC provides reproductive health care, cash assistance, and social services to refugee families, as well as counseling and other support for survivors of sexual violence. In Jordan’s refugee camps, the IRC is providing technical support for refugee women and girls and helping to reunite children with their families.
• In Lebanon, the IRC operates four Women’s Centers for refugees and medical consultations. They are also helping hundreds of refugee families with cash assistance, enabling them to pay for rent, food, utilities, and other essentials.
• In Iraq, at the Domiz camp in the north, the IRC provides camp management and a safe space for women. They are also building a secondary school for refugee children. At Al Qaim camp, near the border with Syria, the IRC is providing free legal assistance, mobilizing community groups, and helping survivors of sexual violence.

A unique aspect of the IRC’s work is its emphasis on protecting women and preventing gender-based violence in situations of mass displacement. Click here for the IRC’s latest Syrian crisis updates.

A unique aspect of the IRC’s work is its emphasis on protecting women and preventing gender-based violence in situations of mass displacement. Click here for the IRC’s latest Syrian crisis updates.

“No matter what the military or political situation is, the human  situation is catastrophic. The relief organizations on the ground are  doing heroic work, and the humanist community is stepping up to help,”  said Dale McGowan, FBB’s executive director.

What you need to know about the Syrian refugee crisis:

• More than 2 million people are now externally displaced and 4.5 million internally displaced by the violence, a total displacement of one-third of the population of Syria. Half are children.
• More than 3,500 children currently in Jordan, Lebanon, and Iraq crossed Syria’s borders unaccompanied or became separated from their families, according to UNICEF.
• Half of all Syrians are now in need of humanitarian aid.
• 35% of Syrian hospitals are now non-functioning; 70% of medical professionals have fled, according to the WHO.
• The scale of this humanitarian disaster is “unparalleled in recent history,” according to UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency.

Donations to this crisis response drive will be forwarded continuously to the IRC. FBB retains no portion of donations. All donations to and through Foundation Beyond Belief are tax deductible to the fullest extent of the law. Click here to make a donation.