— Letter to ANCA Outlines U.S. Humanitarian Response to Syria Conflict
WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of State, in response to concerns raised by the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) and a broad cross-section of Armenian American civic and church leaders, has stressed the urgency of ongoing U.S. diplomatic initiatives to remind all sides in Syria of their obligations under international law to protect civilians and to allow humanitarian organizations safe access to all people in need.
The Department’s letter comes following a July 17th U.S. government briefing on Syria humanitarian assistance efforts hosted by the State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) for representatives of Armenian American civic, church, and charitable organizations from across the United States. The letter to the ANCA underscores the importance that the United States attaches to ensuring regular medical and humanitarian access to Aleppo, and notes the life-saving U.S. contributions to meeting basic needs for those in host countries, including Armenia and Lebanon.
The full array of urgent humanitarian issues of concern to Armenian Americans has consistently been raised by community leaders, including:
1) Ensuring the balanced and needs-based distribution of U.S. humanitarian aid to all areas of Syria, including those like Aleppo with large Armenian and other Christian populations;
2) Preventing humanitarian blockades of civilian populations, such as those creating crises in Aleppo;
3) Providing additional assistance to the Armenian government and NGO’s supporting and helping to settle Syrians who have fled to Armenia, and
4) Assisting the Armenian Church and charitable groups in Lebanon as they support the very considerable humanitarian needs of refugees from Syria.
In his August 5th letter to the ANCA, State Department Director of the Office of Europe, Central Asia and Americas, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration for John Underriner referenced community concerns about getting vital humanitarian aid to the affected communities in Syria and the devastating effects of a recent blockade of assistance to Aleppo. “We recognize the critical need to ensure regular medical and humanitarian access to those who remain in Aleppo and for all displaced and conflict-affected people in Syria,” noted Underriner. “Humanitarian workers are risking their lives to provide life-saving assistance to those suffering and have worked tirelessly with contacts on all of the conflict to attempt to negotiate humanitarian pauses to allow aid delivery. We have reminded all sides to the conflict of their obligations under international humanitarian law to protect civilians, and urge them to allow humanitarian organizations safe access to all people in need.”
The full text of Underriner’s letter is provided below. Since issuing the letter, President Obama announced an additional $185 million in assistance to those affected by the Syrian crisis, bringing to $1 billion the total U.S. assistance commitment to date.
The Armenian American community, along with Armenian communities around the world, has undertaken far-reaching and life-saving humanitarian efforts, through the Armenian Apostolic, Catholic, and Evangelical churches, Syrian Armenian Relief Fund, Armenian Relief Society, Armenian General Benevolent Union and other avenues. The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) has undertaken a grassroots effort to educate Congressional legislators about the plight of Armenians and other affected minorities in Syria and urged Congress to provide relief and resettlement support for at-risk Armenians and other Christian populations in Syria and throughout the Middle East as part of the FY 2014 foreign aid bill.
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Text of State Department Letter to ANCA Regarding U.S. Humanitarian Assistance to those Affected by the Syrian Crisis
Thieves who ransacked a charity’s office had a crisis of conscience and returned the stolen goods – along with a contrite letter of apology. The non-profit organization, which counsels those who are victims of violent sexual attacks, was hit by burglars on July 31 in San Bernardino County, California. The burglars dropped into the building from the roof and made off with laptops and other computer equipment. The director of San Bernardino County Sexual Assault Services Candy Stallings was called to the scene at 4am. She said that police officers were asking questions among the local transient community and explaining the work that the charity carried out. She said that the following night, she was called out again by police but what greeted her at the organization’s door was a pleasant surprise – all the charity’s computer equipment had been returned. There was a note attached which read: ‘We had no idea what we were takeing [sic]. Here your stuff back we hope that you guys can continue to make a difference in peoples live. God bless.’
