On Wed, Jul 24, 2024 at 11:05 AM Rebecca - The Syria Campaign < [email protected]> wrote:
> Dear Friends, > > *Great news: Syrian regime war criminal Omar Aroub will not attend the > Paris Olympics!* > > Aroub oversaw the violent crackdown on student protests during the Syrian > revolution – and was expected to be part of the leadership of Syria’s > Olympic team. His criminal record includes ordering the arbitrary arrest > and torture of students while he was on the leadership of the National > Union of Syrian Students (NUSS), the de facto arm of the regime on campus. > > Ahead of the Games, starting this Friday, *over 7,000 of us signed a > global petition, joining Syrian activists and survivors to demand the > International Olympic Committee (IOC) ban war criminal Omar Aroub. *Together > we ramped up the pressure by writing to the IOC, securing media coverage, > demonstrating in Paris, and sharing our demand across social media. All > backed up by the Syrian British Consortium’s new research into persecution > under the NUSS [1]. > > Public pressure worked. Our campaign pushed the IOC to confirm that this > brutal war criminal won’t receive a dignitary’s welcome in the Olympic > Stadium this week. > > *But the Olympics are just the latest example of Syrian dictator Bashar > Assad using international events and diplomatic channels to polish his > regime’s image around the world.* And a growing number of states – > including Lebanon and Türkiye where millions of Syrian refugees have sought > protection – are beginning to thaw relations with the regime. > > *Will you support The Syria Campaign’s ongoing efforts to keep the > spotlight on the Assad regime’s atrocities, so together, we can stop future > efforts to whitewash war crimes and the regime officials who ordered them?* > <https://act.thesyriacampaign.org/donate/donate-to-tsc-donate/?t=8&akid=7251%2E178622%2EMqttUL> > Yes, I'll donate > <https://act.thesyriacampaign.org/donate/donate-to-tsc-donate/?t=9&akid=7251%2E178622%2EMqttUL> > No, not today > <https://act.thesyriacampaign.org/go/175?t=10&akid=7251%2E178622%2EMqttUL> > > Some EU states, including the Czech Republic and Cyprus, have even > reportedly proposed establishing “safe zones” within Syria, and floated > plans to forcibly return refugees there with no guarantees for their safety. > > The fact is there are no safe areas within Syria. Assad’s regime is > responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths since 2011 and countless > human rights abuses. *Thirteen years on, the Syrian regime still uses > barbaric methods to crush dissent* within the country. Refugees who have > been forcibly deported to Syria by neighbouring states have reported > horrific violations including rape, torture and disappearance. > > It’s clear we will need to continue to remind world leaders just how > brutal Assad’s criminal record is and to demand that instead of shaking > hands, they seek justice and accountability for victims, survivors and > their families. > > But to do this, we need to run powerful campaigns that keep the pressure > on governments and institutions around the world. *Will you chip in today > so the small team at The Syria Campaign can respond quickly to attempts to > whitewash the regime's crimes?* > <https://act.thesyriacampaign.org/donate/donate-to-tsc-donate/?t=11&akid=7251%2E178622%2EMqttUL> > Yes, I'll donate > <https://act.thesyriacampaign.org/donate/donate-to-tsc-donate/?t=12&akid=7251%2E178622%2EMqttUL> > No, not today > <https://act.thesyriacampaign.org/go/175?t=13&akid=7251%2E178622%2EMqttUL> > > *Pushing for Omar Aroub to be banned from the Olympics shows what we can > achieve when we pile on the pressure – but it’s just the first step.* > > Aroub won’t be at Paris 2024, but we’re still calling on the Olympic > committee to refuse to recognise Aroub as the chairman of the Syrian > Paralympic Committee and Syria’s vice president of the General Sports > Federation. The IOC must also listen to Syrian, Ukrainian and Palestinian > campaigners and ban other athletes and delegations linked to war crimes. > This includes Amr Hamsho on the Syrian team who is sanctioned and has > profiteered from close ties to the regime. > > Let's continue to hold them to account. > > In solidarity, > > Rebecca and the team at The Syria Campaign Team > > P.S. Share this artwork by a prominent Syrian artist on Twitter (X) > <https://act.thesyriacampaign.org/go/6264?t=14&akid=7251%2E178622%2EMqttUL> to > celebrate our win and keep the pressure up: > > [image: Ban war criminals poster] > > *[1] Militia on Campus: Crimes of the National Union of Syrian Students at > Damascus University, Syrian British Consortium, > www.syrianbritish.org/nuss-investigation > <https://act.thesyriacampaign.org/go/6246?t=15&akid=7251%2E178622%2EMqttUL>* > ------------------------------ > > [image: Donate to The Syria Campaign] > <https://act.thesyriacampaign.org/donate/donate-to-tsc-donate/?source=nf&t=2&akid=7251%2E178622%2EMqttUL> > > *The Syria Campaign > <https://act.thesyriacampaign.org/go/175?t=3&akid=7251%2E178622%2EMqttUL> *is > a human rights organisation that supports Syria’s heroes in their struggle > for freedom, justice and democracy. Read more about our work here > <https://act.thesyriacampaign.org/go/2689?t=4&akid=7251%2E178622%2EMqttUL> > . > > To ensure our emails reach your inbox, please add > [email protected] to your address book. > > Online donations by credit card are processed by Voices Project USA and > are tax deductible in the United States to the full extent allowable under > the law. Online donations by PayPal are processed by The Voices Project > (UK) and are not currently tax deductible in the US or available for gift > aid in the UK. Voices Project USA Federal Identification Number is > 82-3505967. > > Follow us on Facebook > <https://act.thesyriacampaign.org/go/226?t=5&akid=7251%2E178622%2EMqttUL>, > Twitter > <https://act.thesyriacampaign.org/go/227?t=6&akid=7251%2E178622%2EMqttUL>, > and Instagram > <https://act.thesyriacampaign.org/go/1703?t=7&akid=7251%2E178622%2EMqttUL> > . > > Syria needs all the support we can give it, but if you no longer want to > receive these emails, you can unsubscribe here > <http://act.thesyriacampaign.org/cms/unsubscribe/unsubscribe/?akid=7251%2E178622%2EMqttUL> > . > -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Groups.io Links: You receive all messages sent to this group. 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