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SMUGGLE HOPE INTO SYRIA
Alice Jay - Avaaz.org
This urgent video appeal just came in from one of Avaaz's brave citizen journalists in Syria -- our community may be the only one that can help Danny and his friends before the next massacre.
Right now, the regime is murdering men, women and children and tearing cities apart. China and Russia just handcuffed international action at the UN and gave Assad license to unleash his murder machine to crush the Syrian Spring once and for all. But Danny and the democracy movement are more determined than ever and are urgently asking for our continued international solidarity and support.
Let’s be clear -- as embassies close, medical agencies withdraw and journalists pull out, Avaaz has the only network that is both smuggling medical equipment and journalists in and images and information out. The UN has failed, but we can help peaceful democracy heroes like Danny loosen the dictator's grip on their country. Click here to see Danny's appeal and chip in now so we can continue our Arab spring campaigning and support for citizen journalists -- if 20,000 of us donate now, we can get aid to the most besieged cities and towns before the next attack:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/smuggle_hope_into_syria_q/?vl
Activists like Danny are risking their lives for freedom and counting on our global support. On Saturday, Syria’s brutal forces killed another one of Avaaz's citizen journalists, a 23-year-old named Omar who was a leader of our 400-strong network of activists as he pulled people from the rubble after a deadly massacre in Homs. Omar died as he lived, photographing the regime’s crimes, helping others and sacrificing for freedom. After the regime kicked the international media out, brave civilians like Danny and Omar have risked their lives to break the news blackout and help 18 of the world’s leading journalists from foreign news outlets into the locked-down country. It’s likely that the images you have seen on your TV or photographs in your newspaper came from this courageous team.
But that is just a part of what the Avaaz project has done. Thanks to the generous support of members across the world, Avaaz is providing a rare lifeline of critical support to the democracy movement in Syria. When activists told us medicines were running out, we set up a smuggling network to deliver over $1.8 million worth of medical equipment into the country, saving thousands of lives. When the Syrian National Council was struggling to present a credible leadership alternative to the world, we organized meetings in the UN, Russia and across Europe to support their work.
Day after day, Danny and Omar and hundreds of other heroes have turned out to film and protest, facing down tanks with no support from international governments. But what happens in the next two weeks will be decisive. This is the pinnacle of the Arab Spring and the global struggle against brutal despots. Together we can secure a lifeblood to the resistance and walk with the brave Syrian people on their journey to freedom. Click to watch Danny's desperate appeal and make a life-saving donation now:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/smuggle_hope_into_syria_q/?vl
This year people power in the Middle East has taught the world an important lesson -- together we are stronger than the fiercest dictator, and fiercer than the most ruthless army. On the streets of Syria, Avaaz is a beloved partner in the struggle for freedom. As one opposition leader put it, “the Syrian people have gained strength from knowing that the world, through the Avaaz community, stands with them.” Together, we have made the impossible possible and with our help Assad’s regime will come to end.
With hope and determination,
Alice, Ian, Antonia, Emma, Ricken, Mouhamad, Morgan, Wissam, Sam, Bissan, Will and the entire Avaaz team
More information:
A Doctor’s Cry for Help as Homs Victims Pour In to a Medical Center [Warning: This is a graphic video not suitable for sensitive viewers]
http://www.overstream.net/view.php?oid=r3tmevemrqn0
At Least 200 Reported Killed in Syrian City of Homs (Washington Post)
Homs: Bloody Winter in Syria’s Revolution Capital (CNN)
http://www.cnn.com/2011/12/16/world/meast/syria-homs-profile/index.html
Anger After Russia, China Block UN Action on Syria (Reuters)
Syria Crackdown: Homs Bombarded, Dozens Killed (Huffington Post/Reuters)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/06/syria-crackdown-homs_n_1256699.html